BX  8495   .B35  G7 

Grose,  George  Richmond,  186'f 

James  W.  Bashford 


Digitized  by  the  Internet  Archive 
in  2014 


https://archive.org/details/jameswbashfordpaOOgros 


OTHER  BOOKS  BY 
DR.  GROSE 

RELIGION  AND  THE  MIND 
THE  OUTLOOK  FOR  RELIGION 


James  W.  Bashford 

Pastor,  Educator,  Bishop 

By  y 
GEORGE  RICHMOND  GROSE 

President  DePauw  University 


THE  METHODIST  BOOK  CONCERN 
NEW  YORK  CINCINNATI 


Copyright,  1922,  by 
GEORGE  R.  GROSE 


Printed  in  the  United  States  of  America 


CONTENTS 

PAGE 

Preface   7 

I.  Early  Years   11 

EE.  The  College  Student   23 

III.  The  Student  of  Theology   46 

IV.  The  Preacher  of  Christ   58 

V.  The  Pastor  and  the  Citizen   69 

VI.  The  College  President   90 

VII.  The  Bishop  in  China   Ill 

VIII.  The  Author   161 

IX.  The  Man  and  His  Mind   172 

X.  The  Man  and  His  Character   183 

XI.  The  Man  and  His  Friends  211 

XII.  The  Call  to  Suffering   226 

XIII.  The  Finished  Course  235 

Biographical  Data   247 

Index   249 


ILLUSTRATIONS 


J.  W.  Bashford   Frontispiece 

FACING  PAGE 

John  Wesley  and  James  Whitford  Bash- 
ford.    Childhood  Pictures   17 

Bashford  in  College   26 

The  Young  Preacher   60 

Miss  Jane  M.  Field   73 

President  James  W.  Bashford   95 

Portrait  Painted  by  Arvid  Nyholm   110 

The  Bishop  in  China   113 

Bishop  and  Mrs.  Bashford  Laying  the 
Corner  Stone  of  the  Woman's  Hospi- 
tal, Peking   120 

Bishop  Bashford  and  Dr.  Arthur  Smith 

Traveling  on  House  Boat  in  China.  .  190 
Bishop  Bashford  Traveling  in  the  Coun- 
try in  China   201 

Mrs.  and  Bishop  Bashford.  Last  Photo- 
graph   212 


PREFACE 


Shortly  after  his  death  I  was  requested  to 
write  the  biography  of  Bishop  James  Whitford 
Bashford.  This  request,  coming  from  Mrs.  Bash- 
ford,  endorsed  by  certain  bishops  of  the  Methodist 
Episcopal  Church  and  many  others,  could  not 
be  lightly  regarded.  Believing  that  his  character 
was  so  distinctive  and  his  career  so  distinguished 
in  its  service  to  humanity  as  to  demand  a  record 
of  the  story  of  his  life,  the  task  was  undertaken 
as  a  sacred  trust  and  a  labor  of  love. 

My  purpose  is  to  give  an  interpretation  of  the 
man  and  his  work  rather  than  a  chronological 
transcript  of  his  life.  In  other  words,  my  aim 
shall  be  to  present  such  facts  and  incidents  as 
will  be  illustrative  of  his  character  rather  than 
"mere  records  of  personality."  The  important 
question  to  ask  concerning  every  man's  life  is: 
What  was  his  central  aim  and  how  closely  did 
he  realize  it?  It  is  an  alluring  task  to  discover 
the  motive  that  actuated  James  Whitford  Bash- 
ford;  to  feel  the  thrill  of  the  ambitions  and  the 
aspirations  that  stirred  him;  to  measure  the 
energy  that  was  driving  him  on  ceaselessly;  to 
see  the  visions  that  were  haunting  him  by  day 
and  by  night;  and  to  make  an  appraisal  of  his 
7 


8 


PREFACE 


service  to  his  generation.  If  I  can  make  him  live 
again  in  the  memory  of  his  friends  and  so  por- 
tray the  essential  elements  in  his  nature  and  the 
outstanding  achievements  of  his  career  as  to 
make  those  who  did  not  know  him  see  him  in 
imagination,  I  shall  be  satisfied. 

There  is  available  for  this  study  a  great  wealth 
of  material.  The  writer  has  read  and  re-read 
the  fifty-four  volumes  of  notebooks  written  by 
Bishop  Bashford,  thousands  of  pages  of  corre- 
spondence both  personal  and  official,  all  his  books 
and  published  articles  besides  many  sermons  and 
addresses  in  manuscript.  Scores  of  interviews 
with  mission  workers  in  the  chief  centers  of 
Bishop  Bashford's  work  in  China,  with  Chinese 
officials,  native  preachers,  and  foreigners  resident 
in  China  have  been  held.  Many  personal  letters 
have  been  received  which  have  contributed  val- 
uable information. 

I  wish  to  make  grateful  acknowledgment  of 
the  valuable  and  sympathetic  help  given  by  Mrs. 
Jane  Field  Bashford  in  putting  into  my  hands 
personal  correspondence  and  much  private  matter 
not  otherwise  available.  I  am  deeply  indebted 
also  to  the  former  private  secretaries  of  Bishop 
Bashford,  particularly  to  Mr.  Harrison  S.  Elliot, 
the  Rev.  James  H.  Lewis,  and  Mr.  Joseph  P.  Mac- 
Millan,  for  help  in  transcribing  notebooks  and  veri- 
fying facts;  to  the  late  Mr.  0.  A.Wright  in  making 


PREFACE 


9 


possible  a  trip  to  China  to  study  Bishop  Bash- 
ford's  work  in  the  Orient;  to  many  friends  and 
even  strangers  who  have  furnished  me  with 
letters  and  personal  incidents;  and  to  Bishop  W. 
F.  McDowell  for  helpful  suggestions  in  the  re- 
vision of  the  manuscript. 

George  R.  Grose. 

Greencastle,  Indiana, 
June,  1922. 


CHAPTER  I 


EARLY  YEARS 

James  Whitford  Bashford  was  born  on  May 
29,  1849.  It  was  in  the  period  of  the  great  terri- 
torial expansion  of  the  United  States.  Pioneers 
from  the  Eastern  States,  indifferent  to  privation 
and  hardship,  pushed  into  the  Middle  West, 
built  homes,  established  schools  and  churches, 
and  laid  the  foundations  for  the  future  develop- 
ment of  the  American  nation.  The  year  1849 
marked  the  beginning  of  the  migration  to  Cali- 
fornia in  search  of  gold.  In  Bashford's  early  boy- 
hood he  saw  his  cousin  John  B.  Parkinson,  later 
Professor  of  Mathematics  and  Vice-President  of 
the  University  of  Wisconsin,  join  a  company  of 
men  with  ox  teams  on  their  long  journey  to  the 
Pacific  Coast. 

The  conditions  which  the  early  pioneers  in 
western  Wisconsin  faced  required  souls  of  stern 
stuff.  There  were  few  comforts  and  many  hard- 
ships. Indians  were  numerous  and  bears  were 
quite  neighborly.  The  wolf  at  the  door  was  more 
than  a  figure  of  speech.  One  day  James'  mother 
beat  off  with  a  shovel  a  prowling  wolf  about  to 
enter  the  log  cabin  where  her  young  child  lay 
11 


12  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


sleeping.  But  the  very  rigor  of  pioneer  life  in 
the  Middle  West  was  an  important  factor  in 
young  Bashford's  early  training.  His  hard  work 
on  the  farm  laid  the  foundation  in  physical  vigor 
for  his  long  career  of  eminent  service.  The  stern 
conditions  of  life  in  a  new  community,  the  struggle 
for  self-support,  the  close  contact  with  the  simple- 
hearted  country  folks  gave  him  a  priceless  inherit- 
ance in  energy,  initiative,  simplicity  in  taste, 
ambition  to  achieve,  and  sympathetic  under- 
standing of  people. 

It  was  in  Fayette  in  southwestern  Wisconsin 
that  Bashford  was  born.  His  home  was  the  first 
frame  building  erected  in  the  community,  all 
the  others  being  log  cabins.  There  were  two 
small  churches  and  no  schoolhouse.  The  Bashford 
home  housed  the  village  school  until  a  new  church 
building  was  erected  which  provided  for  the 
school  in  the  basement.  The  picture  of  his  early 
Western  home  as  Bashford  recalled  it  in  later 
life  is  fascinating.  Rugged  simplicity,  tireless 
industry,  few  diversions,  a  neighborly  communism 
altogether  consistent  with  independence,  and  an 
atmosphere  that  stimulated  sober  thought  and 
lofty  purpose. 

The  Bashford  family  was  of  English  origin. 
They  came  originally  from  Devonshire  and  set- 
tled in  the  North  of  Ireland,  where  they  were 
granted  land  in  the  reign  of  Queen  Elizabeth. 


EARLY  YEARS 


13 


Though  the  Bashfords  came  to  America  from 
Ireland,  they  were  of  English  and  not  Celtic 
stock.  One  of  Bishop  Bashford's  ancestors  was 
a  soldier  in  the  Revolutionary  Army,  was  captured 
by  the  British  and  imprisoned  in  the  Old  Sugar- 
house  prison  in  New  York  City.  The  father  of 
Samuel  Morris  Bashford,  a  blacksmith  by  trade, 
was  impressed  as  a  seaman  and  brought  to  the 
United  States.  He  died  suddenly  of  apoplexy  at 
the  age  of  thirty-eight.  Several  of  the  Bashfords 
in  England  were  graduates  of  Oxford  and  Cam- 
bridge and  became  ministers,  educators,  civil  and 
army  officers.  With  plenty  of  militant  blood  the 
whole  clan  had  an  intellectual  bent  and  am- 
bition for  high  attainment  and  for  public  service. 

Samuel  Morris  Bashford,  the  father  of  James 
Whitford,  was  born  in  Newark,  New  Jersey,  and 
went  to  Wisconsin  when  he  was  twenty-two 
years  old.  In  his  early  manhood  he  studied 
medicine  and  at  the  same  time  was  employed 
in  the  drugstore  of  a  physician.  On  coming  to 
his  Western  home  he  became  a  farmer.  He  was 
licensed  at  an  early  age  as  local  preacher  in  the 
Methodist  Episcopal  Church  and  devoted  much 
time  to  holding  services  and  preaching  in  the 
schoolhouses  and  country  churches.  He  was  fre- 
quently called  to  minister  to  the  sick  and  always 
carried  medicines  with  him,  but  refused  to  accept 
any  compensation  either  for  preaching  or  visit- 


14  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


ing  the  sick.  On  one  occasion  he  accepted  five 
dollars  for  his  services,  but  gave  the  money  to  a 
poor  family  before  he  reached  home.  He  was 
utterly  unselfish  in  character  and  made  the 
spiritual  welfare  of  others  his  absorbing  concern. 
He  died  in  the  pulpit  of  apoplexy  at  the  age  of 
thirty-six,  when  his  youngest  son,  James  Whit- 
ford,  was  only  one  year  old.  He  was  a  devout 
man,  much  given  to  introspection,  with  a  mys- 
tical type  of  piety;  an  idealist  whose  generous 
impulses  outran  his  practical  ability;  but  every- 
where revered  for  his  genuine  goodness. 

The  Morris  family,  to  which  the  grandmother 
of  James  Whitford*Bashford  belonged,  was  prom- 
inent in  the  early  history  of  the  republic.  The 
grandmother's  fine  benevolent  face,  her  wide 
knowledge  of  current  affairs,  and  deep  religious 
character  made  upon  young  Bashford  a  profound 
impression.  His  mother,  Mary  Ann  McKee,  was 
a  descendant  of  the  McKees  of  Illinois,  Kentucky, 
and  Virginia,  and  was  of  Scotch-Irish  descent. 
The  family  was  noted  for  men  of  affairs.  One 
was  a  member  of  the  Constitutional  Convention  of 
Virginia,  and  voted  for  ratification  of  the  Con- 
stitution according  to  his  convictions  and  con- 
trary to  the  instructions  of  his  constituency; 
another  was  a  member  of  Congress;  another  was 
an  officer  in  the  Mexican  War;  several  were  prom- 
inent educators  and  ministers  of  the  gospel. 


EARLY  YEARS 


15 


Though  not  educated,  the  mother  of  Bashford 
was  a  woman  of  large  natural  abilities,  of  great 
physical  strength,  of  unusual  capacity  for  business, 
with  great  energy  and  practical  sense,  with 
strong  convictions  and  a  rare  gift  of  leadership. 
All  the  references  in  the  family  correspondence 
portray  the  features  of  a  woman  of  heroic  mold, 
with  a  fine  sense  of  personal  honor,  lover  of  her 
children,  "lover  and  giver  of  life." 

In  a  unique  degree  James  Whitford  Bashford 
united  in  himself  the  distinctive  qualities  of  both 
his  parents.  From  his  father  he  inherited  a  deep 
religious  nature,  with  a  vein  of  mysticism  and 
idealism,  which  found  lifelong  expression  in  a 
devoutness  that  was  both  fervent  and  attractive, 
and  in  such  a  sense  of  the  Divine  Presence  as  made 
him  a  true  seer  among  his  fellows.  His  gener- 
osity, one  of  his  most  outstanding  traits,  came 
from  his  father.  Young  Bashford  was  told  by  his 
mother  stories  of  his  father's  visiting  the  sick  as 
physician,  serving  as  a  minister  of  the  gospel,  also, 
in  the  absence  of  a  lawyer,  drawing  deeds  and 
administering  estates  without  charge.  His  sub- 
scription to  the  village  church  and  school  which 
was  building  at  the  time  of  his  death  was  so 
generous  that  several  years  were  required  for 
his  widow  to  complete  the  payment.  The  ref- 
erences which  the  boy  Bashford  heard  made  to 
his  father  by  men  in  the  pulpit  and  in  private 


16  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


made  upon  him  a  profound  impression.  "On 
one  occasion,"  he  said,  "an  unconverted  man 
put  his  hand  on  my  head  when  I  carried  water 
to  the  field  where  the  men  were  harvesting  the 
grain  and  in  a  half-prayer  and  a  half-wish  ex- 
pressed the  desire  that  I  'might  be  as  good  a  man 
as  my  father,'  then  added  he  did  not  expect  I 
would  ever  measure  up  to  the  ideal."  When 
he  began  to  preach  he  writes,  "I  had  large  audi- 
ences crowding  the  schoolhouses  the  first  time  I 
preached  in  various  parts  of  the  country,  many 
of  the  people  telling  me  that  they  came  not  at 
all  to  hear  me,  but  out  of  reverence  for  my  father." 
This  inheritance  of  imagination  and  spiritual  in- 
sight from  his  father  was  no  less  noteworthy  than 
his  indebtedness  to  his  mother  for  his  practical 
sense,  for  his  sagacity  in  worldly  matters,  and 
for  his  power  in  handling  public  affairs.  Quiet 
and  undemonstrative  in  manner  though  she  was, 
nevertheless,  the  ruggedness  of  her  convictions, 
the  loftiness  of  her  mind,  and  the  strength  of  her 
personality  entered  like  iron  into  the  soul  of  her 
children.  Piety,  learning,  energy,  patriotism,  and 
strong  personal  convictions  were  the  traditions  of 
the  family.  Young  Bashford  had  therefore,  in 
the  character  of  his  parents  and  in  the  influence 
of  his  early  home,  the  most  valuable  asset  with 
which  a  child  can  be  endowed. 

He  had  also  the  advantage  of  a  large  and  mixed 


EARLY  YEARS 


17 


family  life.  Previous  to  her  marriage  to  Samuel 
Bashford  Mrs.  Bashford  was  married  to  Carroll 
Parkinson,  through  whom  she  had  two  children.  A 
few  years  after  her  first  husband's  death  she  mar- 
ried Mr.  Bashford  and  bore  four  children,  Sarah, 
Robert  McKee,  John  Wesley,  and  James  Whitford. 
By  her  last  husband,  William  B.  Trousdale,  she  was 
the  mother  of  Samuel  Whitney  Trousdale.  The 
contact  and  the  struggle  of  this  large  domestic 
circle  made  a  lasting  mark  upon  James  Bashford. 
The  mother's  solicitude  in  making  equitable  dis- 
tribution of  her  meager  estate  among  her  children, 
the  cooperation  of  the  children  in  helping  one 
another  to  get  an  education,  their  pride  in  one 
another's  attainments,  reveal  the  home  environ- 
ment in  which  Bashford's  fine  human  touch  was 
fostered. 

In  his  childhood  traits  the  boy  Bashford  was 
father  to  the  man.  His  appearance  marked  him 
as  a  child  of  unusual  promise.  A  lady  seeing  him 
for  the  first  time  when  he  was  five  years  old 
observed:  "He  will  make  a  great  man."  His 
brother  Robert  once  remarked  that,  while  Jim 
was  the  youngest  of  the  four  children,  he  was  the 
"bell-wether."  As  a  boy  he  was  inquiring  and 
energetic,  enthusiastic  and  unselfish.  The  mem- 
ories of  childhood  which  he  recalled  late  in  his 
life  show  an  early  devotion  to  his  family  and  his 
friends,  also  a  strong  sense  of  justice  and  fearless 


18  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


conviction.  One  of  his  relatives  recalls  the  fol- 
lowing incident  of  his  boyhood: 

The  boys  were  playing  in  the  street  and  one  of 
them  hurled  a  ball  through  a  window.  All  of  them 
ran  away  but  James.  He  promptly  went  to  the 
man  and  said  that  he  had  broken  the  window 
and  would  make  the  loss  good.  He  said  they  had 
a  common  purse  at  home;  and  while  they  never 
had  much  money  each  one  had  access  to  the 
family  pocketbook. 

His  ambition  to  excel,  one  of  his  marked  traits 
of  character,  appears  in  his  early  youth  when  he 
takes  his  place  among  the  seasoned  workers  in  the 
fields  determined  not  to  be  outdone.  He  earned 
his  first  money  at  twelve  years  of  age  by  driving 
a  cow  six  miles  for  a  neighbor,  for  which  he  re- 
ceived twenty-five  cents.  He  was  fond  of  telling 
the  story  of  a  valuable  business  experience  when 
he  was  a  lad  of  fourteen.  He  went  to  a  neighbor 
to  urge  his  selling  a  cow  to  a  poor  man  who  had 
come  to  Wisconsin  from  the  South,  compelled  to 
leave  on  account  of  his  Union  sentiments.  Al- 
though the  amount  was  only  thirty-five  dollars, 
the  owner  refused  to  sell  unless  young  Bashford 
would  indorse  the  note.  When  the  boy  was  called 
upon  to  meet  the  payment,  he  explained  the  cir- 
cumstances to  his  father,  who  advanced  the  money. 
He  adds:  "I  worked  the  next  spring  at  five  dollars 
a  week  to  earn  money  to  meet  my  obligation. 


EARLY  YEARS 


19 


The  experience  was  a  valuable  one  for  me,  as  I 
learned  the  necessity  of  meeting  financial  obliga- 
tions promptly  and  of  care  in  signing  other  peo- 
ple's notes." 

Another  act  of  friendliness  in  behalf  of  the  same 
neighbor  shows  the  fiber  of  young  Bashford.  Mc- 
Farlane's  grain  was  being  destroyed  by  the  depre- 
dations of  the  hogs  of  a  neighbor,  who  refused  to 
repair  his  broken  fences.  When  Bashford's  father 
appealed  to  the  owner  of  the  hogs,  he  became 
very  angry.  Young  Bashford  was  aroused  by  the 
inconsiderateness  of  the  neighbor.  He  prepared  a 
pen  and  drove  the  marauders  in,  and  informed 
the  owner  the  hogs  would  be  kept  at  his  expense. 
A  quarrel  followed  between  the  lad  and  his  neigh- 
bor. After  the  man's  anger  cooled,  he  offered  to 
pay  for  the  damages  and  claimed  his  property, 
but  young  Bashford  declined  to  accept  pay  for 
the  grain  which  the  hogs  had  eaten.  "The  hog 
incident,"  Bashford  observes,  "was  closed  with 
great  friendliness  on  both  sides,  and  thereafter 
my  neighbor  reckoned  with  me  as  a  man  and  not 
as  a  boy." 

His  early  surroundings  in  a  new  country  and 
the  serious  atmosphere  of  his  home  life  were  not 
favorable  to  the  playfulness  of  youth.  But  with 
abounding  good  nature  he  shared  the  interests 
and  joys  of  his  family  and  school  fellows.  We 
have  an  interesting  glimpse  of  the  working  of  his 


20  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


youthful  mind  in  his  own  story  of  the  first  election 
of  President  Lincoln. 

"The  political  excitement  laid  hold  of  the  im- 
agination of  the  boys  and  almost  every  boy  in 
our  neighborhood  was  an  active  partisan.  I  re- 
member William,  John,  and  Carroll  White  shout- 
ing lustily  in  their  field  for  Douglas,  while  I 
shouted  for  Lincoln  in  the  adjoining  field.  Their 
voices  were  more  lusty  and  I  was  beaten  in  the 
shouting.  I  then  decided  to  offer  up  a  secret 
prayer  for  Lincoln's  election  every  time  one  of 
them  shouted,  and  this  I  did  with  the  somewhat 
mechanical  belief  that  every  prayer  would  count 
for  a  vote.  From  that  time  on  to  the  election  I 
offered  many  prayers.  As  our  town  was  over- 
whelmingly Democratic  I  did  not  anticipate  the 
election  of  Mr.  Lincoln,  even  though  I  had  spent 
much  time  in  praying  for  it.  Upon  the  news  of 
his  election  I  was  filled  with  responsibility,  fear- 
ing that  my  prayers  had  accomplished  the  result." 

The  typical  American  home  in  the  Middle  West 
had  a  consuming  interest  in  education.  The  fires 
of  ambition  for  learning  were  kindled  in  the  Bash- 
ford  household  by  the  traditions  of  the  family. 
While  the  mother  of  the  Bashford  children  had 
only  a  common  school  education,  her  ancestors 
were  educated  people  and  for  several  generations 
had  been  lawyers,  ministers,  teachers,  soldiers  of 
distinction,  and  public  leaders.  Besides,  the  father 


EARLY  YEARS 


21 


had  left  a  small  library  of  valuable  books,  among 
them  a  few  Latin  and  Greek  books,  commen- 
taries on  the  Bible,  theological  books,  and  the 
Sermons  of  John  Wesley.  The  mother  repeatedly 
urged  the  children  to  secure  an  education  and 
thus  be  able  to  care  for  themselves,  as  she  could 
make  no  adequate  financial  provision  for  them. 
The  Bashford  boys  were  strongly  influenced  in 
securing  a  higher  education  by  their  cousin,  John 
B.  Parkinson,  who  was  one  of  the  first  students 
in  the  University  of  Wisconsin.  Upon  his  gradua- 
tion from  college  he  opened  a  high  school  in  the 
village  of  Fayette,  where  the  Bashford  brothers 
prepared  for  college,  and  later  entered  the  Uni- 
versity of  Wisconsin,  from  which  they  all  grad- 
uated. In  this  obscure  Western  village  was  being 
enacted  in  miniature  the  most  important  act  in 
the  great  drama  of  the  nation's  development.  No 
sooner  was  the  forest  cleared  and  houses  built 
than  some  place,  however  rude,  was  provided  for 
a  school.  First  in  the  Bashford  house,  later  in  the 
church  basement,  and  then  in  the  schoolhouse, 
the  Bashford  children  began  the  training  which 
led  to  careers  of  distinction.  Bashford's  story  of 
his  preparation  for  college  reveals  his  intellectual 
eagerness  and  his  boundless  energy  in  overcoming 
all  odds: 

"I  remember  indeed  the  part  of  the  farm  which 
I  was  plowing  when  learning  the  Greek  alphabet 


22  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


and  the  Greek  declensions.  I  would  stop  a  few 
minutes  to  glance  at  the  book  at  a  particular 
corner  of  the  field  and  then  study  over  the  lesson 
and  repeat  the  part  learned  earlier  as  I  walked 
around  the  field  behind  the  plow.  Professor  Park- 
inson only  allowed  us  time  to  translate  the  Latin 
and  Greek  which  we  had  mastered  and  to  ask 
questions  concerning  passages  which  we  could  not 
construe.  We  missed  some  essential  things  which 
students  should  learn  in  the  early  study  of  foreign 
languages,  nevertheless  we  gained  a  strong  grip 
on  the  essentials  of  the  subject,  so  that  we  found 
ourselves  able  by  hard  study  to  hold  our  own 
with  other  students  in  college." 

At  the  very  opening  of  his  young  manhood 
Bashford  exhibited  an  insatiable  desire  for  knowl- 
edge, an  ambition  to  excel  in  every  undertaking, 
an  energy  in  work,  and  a  consuming  passion  for 
life  at  its  best  which  marked  him  until  the  end. 


CHAPTER  II 


THE  COLLEGE  STUDENT 

In  the  autumn  of  1867  James  W.  Bashford 
matriculated  as  a  student  in  the  University  of 
Wisconsin.  It  was  in  the  early  days  of  this  insti- 
tution, now  widely  famed  among  the  State  Uni- 
versities of  America.  The  student  of  to-day  in 
Madison  cannot  easily  picture  his  Alma  Mater  of 
fifty  years  ago.  Instead  of  a  campus  crowded 
with  massive  buildings,  there  were  a  few  recita- 
tion halls  and  a  dormitory;  instead  of  yearly  ap- 
propriations of  several  million  dollars  for  building 
and  maintenance,  then  the  most  meager  provision 
for  both  equipment  and  salaries;  now  several  thou- 
sand students  enrolled  annually  in  graduate  and 
professional  schools,  then  about  three  hundred 
men  and  women,  mostly  classical  students.  Now 
the  teaching  staff  numbers  more  than  twice  the 
student  body  then.  In  the  university  then  there 
were  great  teachers  and  distinguished  scholars. 
Among  the  professors  were  William  F.  Allen  in 
Latin,  John  B.  Parkinson  in  Mathematics,  and 
Professor  Carpenter  in  Literature,  and  President 
John  Bascom,  who  made  upon  young  Bashford  a 
lasting  impression. 

Other  changes  have  taken  place  even  more  sig- 
23 


24  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


nificant  than  the  changes  in  campus  walks  and 
buildings.  In  Bashford's  day  the  standard  of  liv- 
ing was  simple  and  inexpensive.  The  majority  of 
the  students  had  a  hard  fight  to  support  them- 
selves. Twice  during  his  college  course  he  had  to 
leave  school  to  earn  money  by  teaching.  The 
long  summer  vacations  he  spent  working  on  the 
farm.  But  pathetic  as  was  the  self-sacrifice  of 
parents  and  the  severe  struggle  of  students  for  an 
education,  the  type  of  character  which  was  pro- 
duced was  the  pride  of  the  college  and  the  hope 
of  the  country.  In  spite  of  the  limitations  upon 
the  colleges  of  fifty  years  ago  in  mean  buildings 
with  meager  equipment  and  inadequate  funds, 
they  afforded  true  intellectual  discipline  and  good 
training  in  character. 

From  the  very  outset  Bashford  took  high  rank 
as  a  student.  He  threw  himself  into  university 
work  with  all  the  mental  eagerness  and  intense 
application  which  characterized  him  as  a  student 
to  the  end  of  his  life.  When  he  entered  the  fresh- 
man class  in  the  university  he  was  deficient  in 
Latin  and  Greek.  Before  the  end  of  the  year  he 
led  his  class  in  these  subjects.  "I  made  it  a  rule," 
he  said,  "never  to  retire  at  night  until  the  lessons 
in  Mathematics,  Latin,  and  Greek  were  prepared 
for  the  succeeding  day,  and  many  a  night  during 
the  first  two  terms  I  studied  until  midnight  and 
sometimes  until  two  o'clock  before  retiring."  His 


THE  COLLEGE  STUDENT  25 


ambition  to  excel  was  kindled  early  in  his  college 
course.  One  day  he  was  so  humiliated  over  the 
laughter  of  his  teacher  and  the  class  at  his  pro- 
nunciation of  his  first  Greek  sentence  that  he 
says,  "As  I  stood  tingling  with  shame  I  resolved 
that  before  the  year  was  out  I  would  stand  at  the 
head  of  that  class  or  die  trying,  and  I  at  once  set 
about  making  good  my  resolve."  He  was  soon 
recognized  as  a  student  of  such  undoubted  powers 
as  to  give  promise  of  distinction. 

In  his  freshman  year  he  was  chosen  with  two 
others  to  represent  the  Athenaeum  Literary  So- 
ciety in  a  debate.  Generous  credit  for  win- 
ning the  debate  was  given  to  young  Bashford. 
Unusual  honor  was  conferred  upon  him  by  his 
election  both  in  his  sophomore  and  junior  year 
to  represent  the  society  as  debater.  He  was 
prevented  by  a  long  illness  from  serving  in  his 
sophomore  year,  and  was  reelected  and  led  in 
the  debate  in  the  winter  of  1871-72,  and  was 
again  victorious.  The  subject  discussed  was  the 
Ku  Klux  Klan  legislation  recently  passed  by 
Congress.  The  debate  required  so  much  time 
for  preparation  that  Bashford  had  given  up  all 
thought  of  leading  his  class  in  scholarship.  He 
consoled  himself,  however,  with  this  reflection:  "I 
am  securing  splendid  mental  discipline  which  I 
regard  as  the  main  object  of  a  college  course,  and 
at  the  same  time  I  am  learning  how  to  utilize 


26  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


every  moment  of  my  time.  While  I  was  kept 
from  entering  the  social  life  of  the  college,  the 
training  in  the  value  of  time  was  of  priceless  ad- 
vantage." These  early  academic  debates  reveal 
the  intellectual  honesty  and  thoroughness  which 
so  finely  characterized  all  his  later  literary  work. 
He  declined  to  support  a  given  side  of  the  question 
unless  it  represented  his  own  convictions.  He 
gave  himself  to  the  contest  with  the  utmost  en- 
thusiasm, caring  chiefly  for  the  honorable  recog- 
nition which  his  success  would  bring  to  the 
Athenaeum  Society.  He  was  ambitious  for  col- 
lege honors,  but  his  chief  concern  was  for  intel- 
lectual excellence  and  the  promotion  of  a  worthy 
cause. 

Several  of  his  contemporaries  who  have  fa- 
vored me  with  reminiscences  of  this  period  of 
his  life  testify  to  the  strong  impression  which  he 
made  both  on  his  teachers  and  fellow  students. 
His  buoyancy  of  spirit  and  uniform  cheerfulness 
made  him  a  general  favorite.  While  his  complete 
occupation  with  his  varied  university  tasks  de- 
prived him  of  many  of  the  fellowships  of  college 
life,  he  was  not  a  recluse.  He  had  strong  convic- 
tions, but  was  never  morbidly  conscientious.  Al- 
ways deeply  serious  in  purpose,  he  never  lost  his 
boyish  spirit.  His  classmates  recall  his  participa- 
tion in  college  pranks,  but  always  with  self- 
respect. 


< 


BASHFORD  IN  COLLEGE 


THE  COLLEGE  STUDENT  27 


The  Rev.  I.  S.  Leavitt  relates  this  incident  of 
college  days:  Huntington  and  Leavitt  had  two 
squirtguns,  named  "Little  Tommy"  and  "Big 
Tom."  "Big  Tom"  would  hold  a  gallon  of  water 
and  was  used  on  various  occasions  in  practical 
pranks.  "Big  Tom"  disappeared,  no  one  knowing 
what  had  become  of  the  gun.  Leavitt  warned  his 
roommate  and  other  close  friends  to  say  nothing 
about  its  being  taken.  Some  two  weeks  after- 
ward, Bashford  put  his  head  out  of  the  window 
of  his  room,  called  to  Leavitt  and  said,  "What 
has  become  of  'Big  Tom'?"  "Oh,  it  will  return," 
said  Leavitt,  in  an  indifferent  manner.  Leavitt 
immediately  reported  to  the  other  boys  that  he 
was  sure  that  Bashford  had  taken  "Big  Tom." 
Some  of  the  boys  were  charged  with  looking  up 
the  schedule  to  see  when  Bashford  and  his  room- 
mate were  to  be  out  of  the  room.  They  procured 
the  key  and  proceeded  to  search  Bashford's  room 
and,  as  anticipated,  found  "Big  Tom"  under 
Bashford's  bed. 

Dr.  William  E.  Huntington,  a  fellow  student, 
one  time  president  of  Boston  University,  writes  of 
Bashford  as  a  student:  "Few  men  whom  I  have 
watched  as  they  passed  from  youth  to  manhood 
and  riper  age  have  retained  as  steadily  as  he 
their  early  traits.  His  buoyancy,  his  thorough- 
ness in  all  work,  his  love  for  books,  his  rapidity  in 
processes  of  thought  and  in  utterance,  his  interest 


28  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


in  the  fundamental  questions  of  government, 
economics,  social  ethics,  philosophy,  and  religion 
were  marked  characteristics  of  Bashford  in  his 
student  days."  Another  who  knew  him  as  a  class- 
mate writes:  "Whether  in  the  classroom  or  in  the 
hall  he  seemed  head  and  shoulders  above  all  the 
rest  of  us,  but  utterly  unconscious  of  himself, 
though  having  always  an  atmosphere  of  his  com- 
ing greatness." 

Bashford's  intellectual  bent  and  the  influences 
of  his  college  days  clearly  marked  him  out  for  a 
professional  career.  He  had  strong  inclinations 
toward  the  bar.  Even  after  he  had  decided  to 
enter  the  ministry  and  had  become  a  theological 
student  the  desire  to  become  a  lawyer  returned 
again  and  again  with  great  force.  One  can  readily 
understand  his  strong  leaning  toward  the  law  as 
a  profession.  He  possessed  in  a  marked  degree 
the  qualities  necessary  for  a  successful  career  as 
an  advocate.  He  had  natural  ability,  an  alert 
mind,  the  habit  of  intellectual  thoroughness  and 
tireless  industry.  With  clear  insight  into  situa- 
tions, deep  interest  in  public  affairs,  and  a  rare 
gift  of  speech,  he  would  undoubtedly  have  taken 
high  rank  either  at  the  bar  or  in  politics.  As 
young  Bashford  early  in  his  student  life  is  strug- 
gling with  the  question  of  his  future  career  one  is 
reminded  of  the  fight  of  Robertson  of  Brighton 
with  his  ambition  to  be  a  soldier,  and  of  George 


THE  COLLEGE  STUDENT  29 


Matheson  to  be  a  lawyer,  and  of  Phillips  Brooks 
to  be  a  teacher.  These  serious  questionings  only 
intensified  the  purposefulness  of  Bashford  as  a 
student. 

In  the  third  term  of  his  freshman  year  Bash- 
ford  had  a  religious  experience  which  influenced 
his  whole  subsequent  career.  His  success  as  a 
student  in  securing  the  highest  grades  in  his  class 
and  the  second  highest  in  the  university,  kindled 
the  fires  of  ambition  for  prominent  place.  For 
the  time  he  was  mastered  by  this  passion.  While 
cherishing  the  dream  of  political  power  and  pro- 
fessional distinction  the  conviction  became  strong 
that  God  was  calling  him  to  the  ministry.  "From 
my  earliest  recollections,"  he  writes,  "I  had  been 
conscious  to  a  greater  or  less  extent  that  I  was 
called  to  preach."  During  the  spring  vacation 
which  he  spent  at  his  home  the  fight  between 
ambition  and  conscience  became  desperate.  The 
mental  struggle  was  so  severe  that  every  incident 
of  the  next  few  weeks  made  an  unforgettable  im- 
pression. When  he  reached  home,  revival  meet- 
ings were  being  held  in  the  village  church.  These 
became  unendurable.  When  he  proposed  to  re- 
turn early  to  the  university  to  resume  his  work, 
his  mother,  sensing  his  inner  conflict,  said  quietly, 
"There  are  two  persons  you  can  never  run  away 
from:  You  can  never  run  away  from  yourself; 
you  can  never  run  away  from  God."    He  felt  at 


30  JAMES  W.  BASH  FORD 


once  that  some  decision  must  be  reached  in  which 
he  would  find  peace.  His  chance  companion  on 
the  train  to  Madison  assured  him  that  he  was 
going  to  be  a  minister.  This  remark  added  to  his 
unrest  of  mind.  Upon  his  arrival  in  Madison  he 
was  met  at  the  station  by  William  C.  Damon,  a 
member  of  the  junior  class,  who  told  him  on  the 
way  to  "Old  College  Hall"  how  the  Christian 
men  of  the  university  were  struggling  against 
great  odds  and  invited  Bashford  to  join  them. 
About  the  same  time  I.  S.  Leavitt,  another  fellow 
student,  appealed  to  him  to  confess  Christ  and 
give  his  life  to  the  Christian  ministry.  Again  and 
again  in  later  life  he  told  with  telling  effect  the 
story  of  these  momentous  days:  "At  heart  I  was 
trying  to  lead  a  Christian  life  and  I  would  not 
have  hesitated  a  moment  openly  to  confess  Christ 
and  join  the  church  and  help  these  men  in  their 
struggle,  if  only  I  could  be  excused  from  preach- 
ing. But  I  knew  that  any  profession  of  faith  was 
impossible  without  a  surrender  to  God,  and  that 
involved  the  tremendous  struggle  in  which  I  was 
engaged  between  conscience  and  ambition.  Run- 
ning away  from  the  revival  services  and  from 
home,  even  with  mother's  consent,  resulted  in 
great  loneliness.  In  the  loneliness  of  that  week 
I  fought  out  the  battle  to  a  finish.  The  hollow- 
ness  of  worldly  ambition  dawned  upon  me.  The 
conviction  that  I  had  already  been  a  coward  to 


THE  COLLEGE  STUDENT  31 


duty  in  spending  two  terms  at  the  State  Univer- 
sity in  a  selfish  struggle  for  personal  advancement 
and  in  dreaming  of  political  preferment  in  the 
future,  without  helping  the  little  band  of  Chris- 
tian students  in  their  struggle  for  higher  ideals, 
grew  upon  me,  and  already  I  began  to  realize  the 
moral  degradation  of  a  life  of  selfishness.  Two 
convictions  became  clear  at  that  time:  that  per- 
sonal ambition  carried  to  its  utmost  length  and 
succeeding  beyond  all  rational  expectations  could 
not  satisfy  the  soul;  and,  second,  that  obedience 
to  conscience  would  bring  peace."  At  this  junc- 
ture another  human  factor  strongly  influenced  his 
decision.  D.  L.  Moody  visited  Madison  and 
spoke  in  the  assembly  chamber  of  the  State 
Capitol  to  a  great  audience.  The  conviction  of 
his  moral  cowardice  was  borne  in  upon  young 
Bashford  with  such  overwhelming  power  that  he 
resolved  to  make  an  early  confession  of  Christ. 
And  yet  he  was  still  haunted  by  the  conviction 
of  earlier  years  that  he  must  preach  the  gospel  if 
he  professed  the  Christian  faith.  His  brother, 
Robert,  who  had  persuaded  James  when  he  was 
twelve  years  of  age  to  make  a  confession  of  faith, 
had  become  a  skeptic.  Nevertheless,  he  now  ad- 
vised James  to  yield  to  his  conscience  and  added: 
"We  boys  can  outargue  father  and  mother  on  the 
problems  of  Christianity,  but  we  know  that  they 
have  an  experience  we  do  not  possess,  and  there 


32  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


is  no  peace  in  skepticism."  He  sought  counsel 
from  his  cousin,  Professor  Parkinson,  who  urged 
him  to  follow  his  own  highest  convictions  of  duty, 
also  adding,  there  is  no  blessedness  in  skepticism. 
He  then  went  to  Professor  Allen,  a  Unitarian  in 
faith,  whom  he  greatly  admired,  and  told  his  story 
of  inner  unrest  and  doubt.  He  advised  Bashford 
to  go  to  the  Methodist  boys  who  could  help  him 
in  his  struggle,  as  he  could  not.  Following  Pro- 
fessor Parkinson's  directions  and  still  under  the 
impulse  of  Mr.  Moody's  heroic  faith  and  courage, 
Bashford  went  to  a  prayer  meeting  held  once  a 
week  in  one  of  the  recitation  rooms  of  the  uni- 
versity. The  leader  of  the  meeting  that  day  was 
I.  S.  Leavitt,  who  later  became  a  well-known 
minister  of  the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church.  As 
Bashford  entered  the  room,  the  sight  of  Vroman, 
a  junior,  a  manly  fellow  of  popular  parts,  was  a 
great  shock,  as  he  supposed  that  Vroman  was 
there  to  scoff.  But  Vroman  and  Bashford  soon 
knelt  side  by  side,  making  their  confession  of 
faith.  But  peace  did  not  come  to  Bashford's 
heart  until  he  accepted  the  urgent  invitation  of 
Damon  to  go  with  him  to  the  jail  on  the  following 
Sunday  morning  and  speak  to  the  prisoners. 
Speaking  from  Romans  12.  1,  "I  beseech  you 
therefore,  brethren,  by  the  mercies  of  God,  that 
ye  present  your  bodies  a  living  sacrifice,  holy,  ac- 
ceptable unto  God,  which  is  your  reasonable 


THE  COLLEGE  STUDENT  33 


service,"  he  portrayed  the  unsatisfactory  nature 
of  the  life  they  were  living  and  urged  them  to 
accept  God's  plan  of  life.  Two  of  the  prisoners 
responded  to  his  invitation  and  found  peace.  To 
Bashford  this  was  a  strong  external  confirmation 
of  his  call  to  the  ministry.  As  he  became  active 
in  Christian  effort  among  his  fellow  students  and 
as  he  spoke  whenever  opportunity  was  afforded 
in  the  country,  he  gradually  came  into  an  expe- 
rience of  the  peace  of  the  Christian  life.  It  is  not 
strange  that  one  with  his  deep  religious  sensibili- 
ties, who  had  kept  up  the  habit  of  prayer  from 
childhood  and  was  nurtured  in  an  atmosphere  of 
fervent  piety,  when  confronted  by  the  skeptical 
questionings  of  his  own  intellectual  awakening 
and  an  ambition  for  place  and  power,  should  have 
had  just  such  a  spiritual  struggle.  This  decisive 
struggle  brought  out  in  bold  outline  the  funda- 
mental issue  of  his  life,  and  was  the  birth  of  a 
loyalty  to  duty  from  which  he  never  wavered.  In 
this  high  hour  were  the  beginnings  of  a  conviction 
of  spiritual  reality,  of  a  certainty  of  the  Divine 
Presence,  and  an  experience  of  inner  peace  and 
triumphant  hope  which  in  later  life  became  the 
charm  and  strength  of  his  radiant  personality. 

It  was  in  the  autumn  of  1870  that  Bashford 
had  an  experience  which  confirmed  his  religious 
faith  in  an  extraordinary  fashion.  As  he  was 
returning  to  the  university  he  had  a  violent  attack 


34  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


of  typhoid  fever  and  narrowly  escaped  death. 
When  given  up  to  die  by  the  attending  physicians 
his  brother  Robert  urged  him  to  resolve  to  live. 
His  brother,  Whitney  Trousdale,  said  calmly  that 
he  had  received  assurance  while  in  prayer  that 
James  would  live.  The  experience  which  imme- 
diately followed  is  so  sacredly  personal  that  it 
should  be  set  forth  only  in  Bashford's  own  words: 
"I  was  making  the  best  effort  to  maintain  con- 
sciousness. To  my  great  surprise  I  found  myself 
apparently  in  the  other  world.  I  immediately 
recognized  my  Aunt  Margaret,  who  had  died  only 
a  few  weeks  before  my  illness.  I  also  recognized 
my  father,  who  had  died  twenty  years  earlier. 
Then  I  recognized  Christ.  I  recall  no  words 
spoken  to  me  by  anyone  save  that  Christ  re- 
marked, 'Your  work  is  not  yet  done.'  I  expressed 
a  desire  to  remain.  He  did  not  refuse  the  request, 
but  said  again,  'Your  work  is  not  yet  done.'  I 
spoke  again,  mentioning  the  struggles  I  had  had 
in  life  and  the  terrible  pain  of  the  illness,  and  re- 
quested that  I  might  remain.  He  did  not  refuse 
the  request,  but  said  again,  'Your  work  is  not 
yet  done.'  Then  I  requested  that  I  might  come 
home  immediately  upon  its  completion,  which  re- 
quest he  granted.  I  have  never  known  whether 
I  was  in  the  body  or  out  of  the  body,  whether 
this  experience  was  an  objective  reality  or  a 
purely  subjective  experience.    It  has  had  all  the 


THE  COLLEGE  STUDENT 


35 


effect  in  my  own  life  of  the  most  solemn  reality. 
From  this  time  on  my  study  was  with  an  entirely 
different  motive.  This  was  a  turning  point  in  my 
career." 

Whatever  interpretation  may  be  placed  upon 
this  mystical  experience  which  Bashford  records, 
the  inescapable  fact  is  that  it  issued  in  a  sense 
of  inner  peace  such  as  he  had  never  known  before, 
in  a  certainty  of  the  reality  of  spiritual  things 
which  he  never  afterward  questioned,  in  the 
dominance  of  a  new  motive  in  his  life— unselfish 
service  instead  of  personal  ambition.  The  validity 
of  every  human  experience  is  to  be  tested  finally 
by  what  it  contributes  to  the  practical  uses  of 
living.  Judged  by  this  standard,  it  had  all  the 
marks  of  solemn  reality,  for  out  of  it  came  the 
issues  of  a  victorious  life. 

One  of  the  most  interesting  traits  which  ap- 
peared in  Bashford 's  student  days  was  his  faculty 
for  turning  every  happening,  however  unfavor- 
able, to  higher  uses.  He  seized  and  appropriated 
every  experience  for  his  own  development.  Twice 
his  college  course  was  interrupted  by  lack  of 
funds.  Each  time  he  was  invited  to  take  charge 
of  the  village  school.  He  entered  upon  the  diffi- 
cult task,  not  as  a  hireling  to  secure  money  for 
his  education,  but  bent  upon  serving  the  com- 
munity as  a  teacher.  To  conduct  successfully  an 
unclassified  school  in  a  single  room  which  com- 


36  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


bines  beginners  with  advanced  students  older  than 
the  teacher,  with  no  equipment  other  than  four 
walls  and  the  raw  human  material  which  displays 
amazing  mental  resistance  to  instruction,  is  an 
intellectual  feat  of  a  high  order.  But  so  intelli- 
gently did  he  throw  himself  into  the  work  of  the 
school  that  he  maintained  discipline  and  inspired 
many  of  his  students  to  enter  the  university,  at 
the  same  time  he  was  pursuing  advanced  studies 
and  learning  lessons  in  self-mastery  and  in  dealing 
with  students  which  were  invaluable  to  him  later 
as  an  educator.  He  entered  into  the  sports  of 
the  boys  on  the  playground  and  was  familiarly 
called  by  them  "Jim";  while  in  the  classroom  he 
was  addressed  as  "Teacher"  and  always  main- 
tained their  respect  and  confidence. 

It  was  during  his  term  as  principal  of  the 
Fayette  schools  that  a  love  affair  developed  be- 
tween him  and  a  fellow  teacher,  Miss  Mary  Loof- 
burrow,  which  came,  however,  to  a  sudden  and 
dramatic  end:  but  altogether  to  the  credit  of 
young  Bashford.  Miss  Loofburrow's  brother  en- 
tered the  school  and  played  the  part  of  a  bully, 
defying  the  authority  of  the  teacher.  After  dis- 
missing him  from  the  school  Bashford  imme- 
diately went  to  Miss  Loofburrow's  mother  and 
said  that  he  would  not  continue  his  attentions  to 
her  daughter  and  thereby  disregard  her  feelings 
for  the  wayward  son.    He  would  not  suffer  senti- 


THE  COLLEGE  STUDENT  37 


ment,  however  strong,  to  override  the  demands 
of  a  higher  chivalry. 

In  spite  of  the  breaks  in  his  college  course  and 
his  extra  work  Bashford  maintained  high  stand- 
ing in  scholarship.  He  could  never  be  labeled  a 
"college  grind,"  though  he  developed  a  surprising 
capacity  for  hard  work.  He  did  many  things 
and  excelled  in  all  of  them.  The  secret  was  his 
intense  application  to  the  task  in  hand.  He  was 
utterly  absorbed  in  whatever  he  was  doing.  He 
taught  a  Bible  class  in  one  of  the  churches.  He 
preached  frequently  in  the  country  around  Madi- 
son. His  junior  year  he  served  as  chaplain  of  the 
insane  asylum,  preaching  every  Sunday  and  writ- 
ing his  sermons.  In  addition  to  his  work  in  de- 
bate he  made  a  brilliant  record  as  editor  of  the 
University  Press.  George  W.  Raymer,  a  member 
of  the  class  of  1871,  proposed  to  Bashford  that 
he  join  him  in  founding  a  college  paper,  at  the 
same  time  agreeing  to  buy  the  press  and  be  re- 
sponsible for  all  the  expense,  and  to  divide  the 
profits  if  any.  After  consulting  his  brothers  and 
his  friends  in  the  faculty,  Bashford  joined  in  this 
enterprise,  believing  that  the  experience  in  writ- 
ing would  be  more  valuable  than  concentrating  all 
his  efforts  upon  the  college  course.  He  believed 
also  that  he  could  render  some  real  service  to  the 
university  which  was  providing  for  his  education 
with  no  cost  to  himself.   This  confidence  was  soon 


38  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


vindicated.  By  the  enterprise  of  these  amateur 
journalists  the  University  Press  was  distributed 
regularly  among  the  State  legislators,  who  were 
kept  informed  concerning  the  claims  of  the  uni- 
versity. The  college  paper  contributed  not  a 
little  toward  the  awakening  of  public  sentiment 
for  the  generous  support  of  the  State  University. 
The  following  paragraph  from  the  University 
Press,  December  20,  1871,  illustrates  the  literary 
style  and  the  intellectual  vigor  of  Bashford,  the 
student. 

(Editorial  in  The  University  Press,  December  20,  1871) 

College  Regulations 

We  are  surprised  to  sometimes  hear  from  other  colleges 
that  students  are  forced  to  attend  chapel  exercises,  and  reli- 
gious services  on  the  Sabbath;  and  we  recently  saw  an  ex- 
change anxiously  inquiring  how  voluntary  worship  works 
practically. 

We  could  hardly  think  it  necessary  to  answer  that  ques- 
tion in  free  America,  but  we  will  say  to  our  more  unfortunate 
brethren  that  this  system  has  always  prevailed  here,  and  we 
believe  with  the  best  results. 

We  might  further  add  that  aside  from  the  instructions  for 
the  minutiae  of  college  life  the  only  regulation  that  exists  is 
the  general  rule,  "Conduct  yourselves  like  gentlemen." 

College  tricks  are  scarcely  known  here.  We  are 
ashamed  of  our  ignorance,  but  we  confess  we  had  to  consult 
the  dictionary  to  learn  the  meaning  of  the  term  "hazing" 
which  we  so  frequently  saw  in  exchanges.  We  by  no  means 
regard  our  university  as  an  Utopia  or  a  paradise;  we  have 


THE  COLLEGE  STUDENT  39 


too  much  human  nature  here  for  that;  nor  do  we  advocate 
that  liberty  which  degenerates  into  license,  that  freedom 
which  leads  to  anarchy.  But  we  do  believe  that  when  col- 
lege authorities  learn  to  treat  students  less  like  boys  and 
more  like  men,  to  rely  less  upon  their  fears  and  more  upon 
their  honor,  it  will  be  productive  of  beneficent  results. 

Nature  never  forces  vegetation,  the  genial  influence  of  the 
sun  leads  the  seed  to  burst  its  shell  to  penetrate  the  earth 
and  grow  upward  seeking  the  source  of  its  life.  So  educa- 
tion and  Christianity  never  force  men  to  grow;  but  they, 
rather,  draw  us  toward  the  sources  of  learning,  and  to  the 
fountain  of  life;  and  prompt  us  to  seek  for  ourselves  a  higher 
and  nobler  development. 

It  was  also  as  editor  of  the  college  paper  that 
he  exhibited  his  strength  in  moral  leadership  on 
the  campus.  He  prevented  the  circulation  of  a 
disgraceful  bogus  published  by  two  or  three  of 
the  juniors.  They  yielded  to  his  plea  not  to  in- 
jure the  university  by  distributing  the  scurrilous 
sheet,  and  suppressed  the  entire  edition.  When 
President  Twombly,  who  was  a  Methodist,  ap- 
pealed to  Bashford  to  come  to  his  aid  in  a  personal 
controversy  with  the  Board  of  Regents  by  arous- 
ing through  the  University  Press  the  ministers  of 
the  State  to  come  to  his  support,  Bashford  re- 
fused. He  assured  the  president  that  the  Regents 
were  not  aiming  a  blow  at  Christianity  or  at  the 
Methodist  Church  and  that  it  would  be  most  un- 
fortunate to  draw  the  churches  into  a  controversy 
with  the  State  University.    Later,  when  Presi- 


40  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


dent  Bascom,  a  man  of  rare  ability  and  high 
ideals,  was  involved  in  a  controversy  with  the 
Regents,  Bashford  attacked  the  president  of  the 
Board  in  the  columns  of  the  Madison  Daily  Demo- 
crat and  strongly  supported  President  Bascom.  A 
little  later  the  University  Press  openly  cham- 
pioned the  election  of  Professor  Kerr,  of  Beloit 
College,  as  professor  of  Greek  and  contributed  to 
the  defeat  of  a  self-seeking  candidate  from  the 
university  faculty  whom  Bashford  believed  to  be 
unworthy.  There  is  no  doubt  that  as  a  student 
Bashford,  through  his  rare  ability,  striking  per- 
sonality, and  moral  fearlessness,  exercised  great 
influence  on  the  campus.  His  utter  frankness  and 
his  inner  recoil  at  meanness  or  selfishness  some- 
times led  him  to  interfere  in  matters  which  had 
not  been  committed  to  him.  He  did  not  know 
the  language  of  self-compromise.  In  the  presence 
of  duty  he  never  saw  danger.  Through  his  in- 
fluence and  the  influence  of  other  students  of  his 
time  the  grip  of  skepticism  in  the  university  was 
loosened,  the  religious  life  was  quickened,  and 
many  men  who  later  came  to  prominence  became 
ministers  and  teachers.  Notable  among  these  are: 
Dr.  William  E.  Huntington,  the  Rev.  I.  S.  Lea- 
vitt,  D.D.,  and  Dr.  W.  C.  Damon. 

It  was,  however,  as  orator  of  the  Athenaeum 
Society,  in  his  senior  year,  that  Bashford  made  his 
most  brilliant  appearance.  Much  to  the  disappoint- 


THE  COLLEGE  STUDENT  41 


ment  of  his  friends,  he  chose  as  the  subject  of  the 
oration  "James  Gates  Percival."  In  the  choice  of 
this  subject,  as  well  as  in  the  oration  itself,  there  is 
a  revelation  of  the  spirit  and  genius  of  the  young 
scholar.  By  this  speech  Bashford  hoped  to  ac- 
complish three  purposes:  first,  to  give  some  rec- 
ognition to  Mr.  Percival  as  an  American  scholar 
to  whom  belonged  the  credit  of  a  larger  part  of 
the  work  on  Webster's  Dictionary;  second,  to  in- 
crease popular  appreciation  of  his  poetry,  which 
had  received  high  praise  from  the  poets  and 
scholars  of  the  country,  but  was  not  popular  with 
the  people;  third,  to  recognize  his  public  service 
as  State  Geologist  of  Wisconsin  in  refusing  to 
profit  by  his  discoveries  of  lead  ore  and  in  pub- 
lishing his  knowledge  for  the  benefit  of  all  the 
citizens.  For  the  purpose  of  exalting  the  scholar- 
ship, the  literary  genius  and  high-minded  public 
service  of  a  fellow  citizen  this  young  collegian 
made  James  Gates  Percival  the  hero  of  his  ora- 
tion. The  address  showed  thorough  study,  wide 
reading,  and  discriminating  interpretation.  It  was 
delivered  with  the  earnest  enthusiasm  and  im- 
petuous speech  which  characterized  all  Dr.  Bash- 
ford's  public  utterances.  The  oration  made  so 
profound  an  impression  upon  the  citizens  of  Madi- 
son that  he  was  requested  to  publish  it  and  to 
become  the  agent  in  raising  funds  for  a  monument 
to  Percival  in  Wisconsin.    The  following  extract 


42  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


from  the  manuscript  gives  an  idea  of  the  literary 
method  of  the  young  orator: 

"We  are  first  struck  with  the  individuality  of 
Percival's  writings.  In  his  poetry  we  read  his 
history  truest.  'The  Suicide,'  his  first  long  poem, 
depicts  in  glowing  colors  his  aspiration,  in  lurid 
light  his  passions,  in  darker  shades  his  early  fail- 
ures. Later  his  life  in  its  lofty  aims  and  deep 
insight,  in  heroic  struggles  and  manly  endurance, 
in  ever  pursuing  and  never  reaching  his  ideal,  is 
pictured  with  fearful  energy  in  'Prometheus.'  He 
is  of  the  imaginative  school  whose  best  represent- 
ative is  Byron.  He  believed  in  depths  in  human 
nature  which  the  most  perfectly  manufactured 
line  cannot  sound.  Hence  he  wrote,  not  from  the 
artificial  rules  of  criticism,  not  from  books,  not 
even  from  observation,  but  from  the  guidance  of 
nature  and  the  inspiration  of  genius.  .  .  .  Master- 
ing every  modern  language,  thoroughly  imbued 
with  classic  lore,  and  with  sympathy  as  broad  as 
humanity  itself,  he  swept  the  whole  lyre  of  har- 
mony and  is  the  most  cosmopolitan  poet  the 
world  has  yet  produced.  Not  only  was  he  in 
hearty  sympathy  with  all  nations,  but  almost 
every  sentiment  of  the  soul  finds  voice  in  his 
verse.  We  see  patriotism  in  his  'American  Eagle,' 
love  in  his  'Star  of  My  Heart,'  affection  in  his 
'Consumptive,'  sorrow  in  'The  Mourner,'  and  re- 
ligion in  his  'Star  of  Bethlehem.'  .  .  .  Not  satis- 


THE  COLLEGE  STUDENT  43 


fied  with  the  real,  Percival  is  ever  painting  the 
possible  and  becomes  peculiarly  the  poet  of  our 
aspirations.  However  universal  the  sweep  of  his 
harmony,  it  is  all  upon  the  same  key  of  a  higher 
life  and  a  nobler  destiny.  This  we  conceive  to  be 
the  sign  and  the  essence  of  the  loftiest  poetic 
inspiration.  It  is  the  secret  of  Byron's  'Restless 
Passion,'  the  central  truth  of  Goethe's  'Faust,' 
and  gives  birth  to  Schiller's  'Power  of  Song.' 
With  it  Dante  could  not  rest  on  earth,  but  by 
the  wings  of  genius  cleaved  to  the  empyrean  seek- 
ing his  angel  Beatrice;  and  by  this  aspiration 
Milton,  true  bard  of  heaven,  gazed  on  the  throne 
itself  of  Deity  till  his  very  eyes  were  blinded  by 
the  brightness.  So  Percival  was  ever  giving  voice 
to  the  divinity  that  stirred  within  him.  Every 
page  of  his  poetry,  yea,  almost  every  verse  em- 
bodies some  heaven-born  aspiration. 

"May  we  not  then  confess  an  admiration  of  this 
man  whose  life  is  as  poetical  as  his  poetry,  as 
exalted  as  his  conceptions,  as  beautiful  as  the 
sentiments  he  embalmed  in  lines  of  deathless 
melody;  our  admiration  of  that  modest  scholar 
possessing  such  a  mine  of  intellectual  wealth;  our 
love  of  that  poet  before  whose  genius  such  men  as 
Bryant,  Whittier,  Willis,  and  Everett  bow  in  rev- 
erence, and  whose  poetry  lifts  us  above  the  region 
of  our  lower  turmoil  into  the  sunshine  of  a  higher 
life?   And  when  we  remember  that  Wisconsin  was 


44  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


his  adopted  State,  that  in  this  beautiful  city  and 
among  our  hills  he  passed  the  happiest  days  of 
his  life,  that  his  dying  request  was  to  be  buried 
among  those  people  he  so  much  loved,  may  we 
not  feel  a  just  pride  in  proclaiming  this  man  our 
countryman  and  our  State  his  home?" 

When  the  faculty  announced  the  honors  of  the 
graduating  class,  Bashford  was  surprised  to  find 
that,  despite  his  other  work,  he  was  given  the 
highest  honor  in  the  classical  course.  When  his 
mother  came  to  witness  his  graduation  he  was 
surprised  to  receive  no  word  of  praise  from  her 
for  his  first  rank  in  scholarship.  The  chief  interest 
she  expressed  was  in  the  fact  that  he  was  entering 
the  Christian  ministry.  In  reviewing  his  life  in 
the  university  he  writes,  "The  mental  and  spirit- 
ual, even  the  financial  struggles,  as  well  as  the 
physical  struggle  for  life  through  which  I  passed 
during  my  four  years'  course  will  always  consti- 
tute this  a  turning  point  in  my  life  and  lead  me  to 
look  with  deathless  gratitude  to  this  great  State 
University  as  my  Alma  Mater." 

Bashford  as  a  student  is  thoroughly  represen- 
tative of  the  American  student  at  his  best.  Not 
a  bookworm  absorbed  in  studies  to  the  neglect  of 
the  social  side  of  college  life,  and  yet  never  allow- 
ing himself  to  be  diverted  from  the  chief  busi- 
ness of  the  student — the  attainment  of  intellectual 
excellence  and  self-discipline  through  the  mastery 


THE  COLLEGE  STUDENT  45 


of  his  tasks.  In  spite  of  the  limitations  upon  his 
social  privileges  on  account  of  pressure  of  work, 
he  entered  sympathetically  into  all  the  human 
interests  of  the  college.  Striving  to  excel  in  what- 
ever he  undertook  and  ambitious  for  high  scholar- 
ship, he  never  forfeited  friendships  by  rivalry  for 
class  honors  nor  degenerated  into  a  mere  "intel- 
lectual." No  sooner  has  he  graduated  from  col- 
lege than  we  see  Bashford  in  the  grip  of  a  great 
life  purpose.  Believing  that  his  life  was  a  plan 
of  God  and  refusing  to  be  swerved  by  temporary 
advantage,  he  sets  himself  to  one  supreme  task — 
preparing  to  be  "a  good  minister  of  Jesus  Christ." 


CHAPTER  III 


THE  STUDENT  OF  THEOLOGY 

In  the  fall  of  1874  James  W.  Bashford  entered 
the  School  of  Theology  of  Boston  University. 
Following  his  graduation  from  college  he  spent  a 
year  as  instructor  of  Greek  in  the  University  of 
Wisconsin.  He  was  urged  by  the  President  to 
continue  teaching,  with  the  promise  of  an  early 
promotion  to  a  professorship.  The  conviction 
that  he  must  become  a  minister  grew  steadily 
stronger  and  so  he  declined  the  offer.  On  the 
way  to  Boston  he  spent  one  Sunday  in  Chicago 
in  order  to  hear  two  of  the  most  prominent 
preachers  in  the  Middle  West,  Dr.  David  Swing 
and  Dr.  Henry  W.  Thomas.  He  resolved  to 
spend  the  following  Sunday  in  New  York  hearing 
Henry  Ward  Beecher  and  Dr.  John  Hall,  who 
were  then  at  the  height  of  their  fame  as  preachers. 
He  found  it  necessary  to  stop  in  New  Haven, 
where  he  expected  to  see  a  former  roommate, 
Robert  Brown,  in  order  to  borrow  money  enough 
to  go  on  to  Boston.  Immediately  upon  his  arrival 
he  took  charge  of  the  elevator  in  the  dormitory 
for  a  time.  His  experience  in  self-support  while 
in  college  made  him  self-reliant  during  the  seven 
46 


THE  STUDENT  OF  THEOLOGY  47 


years  which  he  spent  in  graduate  study  in  Boston. 
He  writes  in  his  notes:  "During  the  first  year  I 
was  invited  occasionally  to  preach  for  the  Con- 
gregationalists.  This  enabled  me  to  pay  my 
board  and  at  the  same  time  to  hear  at  least  one 
sermon  each  Sunday  by  Phillips  Brooks."  His 
ability  was  immediately  recognized  and  his  serv- 
ices as  a  student  pastor  were  in  demand  until  the 
completion  of  his  graduate  studies. 

As  a  student  in  theology  he  took  high  rank. 
He  was  surpassed  in  Hebrew  only  by  Hinckley 
G.  Mitchell,  who  later  became  Professor  of  He- 
brew in  Boston  University  School  of  Theology. 
Professor  Mitchell  became  one  of  the  most  emi- 
nent Hebrew  scholars  in  America,  a  man  of  great 
sincerity  and  deep  piety,  but  somewhat  lacking  in 
pedagogical  tact  in  his  teaching. 

Among  Bashford's  classmates  in  the  theological 
seminary  who  have  come  to  distinction  as  minis- 
ters were  Dr.  John  and  Henry  Faville,  of  the 
Congregational  Church;  Dr.  John  M.  Barker; 
Bishop  Wilbur  P.  Thirkield;  President  Bradford 
P.  Raymond,  of  Wesleyan  University;  and  Kath- 
erine  Lente  Stephenson,  Professor  Olin  A.  Curtis, 
and  Anna  Shaw.  He  often  referred  to  the  intel- 
lectual stimulus  and  inspiration  of  these  fellow 
students  as  one  of  the  formative  influences  of  his 
life. 

The  ideals  and  spirit  of  Boston  University  also 


48  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


made  upon  young  Bashford  a  profound  impres- 
sion. From  the  day  of  its  founding  until  the 
present  it  has  borne  the  imprint  of  the  scholarly 
spirit  of  the  first  president,  Dr.  William  Fairfield 
Warren.  The  School  of  Theology  has  from  the 
beginning  had  a  name  for  its  hospitality  to  all 
truth,  encouraging  high  scholarship,  open-minded, 
reverent  study  of  the  Scriptures,  and  inspiring 
loyalty  to  the  fundamentals  of  the  Christian  faith. 
With  all  the  changing  currents  of  religious  think- 
ing during  the  past  half  century  this  school  of  the 
prophets  has  maintained  a  noble  tradition  for 
fidelity  to  a  liberal,  evangelical  Christian  faith. 
It  has  not  been  betrayed  into  the  radicalism  of 
rationalistic  thinking  on  the  one  hand,  nor  into 
the  barrenness  of  an  unthinking  conservatism  on 
the  other  hand.  As  a  student  of  theology  Bash- 
ford  found  himself  in  an  atmosphere  that  fostered 
alike  intellectual  honesty  and  fervent  spirituality. 

There  were  giants  as  teachers  in  Bashford's 
student  days  in  Boston.  The  Dean  of  the  Theo- 
logical School,  Dr.  James  E.  Latimer,  was  a  mas- 
ter of  theological  and  philosophical  learning.  Dr. 
A.  P.  Peabody,  of  Harvard,  said  Dr.  Latimer 
was  the  best  read  man  in  German  theology  then 
living  in  America.  He  combined  great  intellectual 
breadth  with  profound  spiritual  insight.  "On  one 
occasion,"  said  Bashford,  "when  I  was  greatly 
agitated  over  some  question  in  higher  criticism 


THE  STUDENT  OF  THEOLOGY  49 


that  had  been  raised  in  my  study  of  the  Old  Tes- 
tament, I  met  Professor  Latimer  on  the  stairway 
and  blurted  out  my  question  to  him.  He  invited 
me  to  walk  with  him  to  the  train,  and  on  the  way 
poured  out  such  a  wealth  of  reading  as  showed 
that  he  had  mastered  the  literature  on  the  subject 
and  expressed  so  sound  a  judgment  as  to  the  ulti- 
mate outcome  of  my  agitation  that  he  gave  me 
new  intellectual  balance  and  courage."  The 
breadth  and  thorough  scholarship  of  Latimer  was 
an  inestimable  boon  to  Bashford  and  scores  of 
young  men  in  passing  from  an  inherited  into  a 
vital  Christian  faith. 

In  1886  Bashford  wrote  a  character  sketch  of 
Dean  Latimer  which  appeared  in  the  Methodist 
Review.  The  closing  paragraph  is  a  fine  delinea- 
tion of  the  spiritual  features  which  Bashford 
nobly  reflected  in  his  own  character: 

"At  a  time  when  the  intellectual  world  is  thor- 
oughly alive — when  many  are  failing  through  over- 
activity without  sufficient  ripeness — when  even 
the  church  is  flooded  with  mediocre  literature  and 
we  are  vainly  striving  to  make  our  achievements 
greater  than  our  characters,  he  probably  accom- 
plished more  for  God  by  his  steady  pursuit  of 
truth  for  its  own  sake  and  not  as  an  object  of 
intellectual  barter — by  his  great  attainments  and 
childlike  humility — by  his  outward  contentment 
in  the  performance  of  inconspicuous  duties  and 


50  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


his  inward  struggle  for  an  unrealized  perfection, 
than  he  could  have  accomplished  by  some  fame- 
attracting  work.  He  did  not  despise  but  simply- 
lost  sight  of  earthly  honors  in  his  eagerness  to 
realize  his  possibilities  as  a  child  and  a  servant  of 
God." 

Another  great  teacher  to  whom  Bashford  made 
grateful  and  reverent  acknowledgment  of  his  in- 
debtedness was  William  F.  Warren.  His  learning 
was  more  profound,  his  thinking  more  original 
and  daring,  and  the  influence  of  his  personality 
deeper  than  perhaps  was  that  of  any  other  teacher 
in  the  school.  The  students  of  Doctor  Warren 
ranged  with  him  through  the  vast  fields  of  com- 
parative religions  in  profound  admiration  of  his 
erudition,  his  intellectual  grasp,  and  lofty  char- 
acter. To  President  Warren  Bashford  owed  the 
beginning  of  his  lifelong  interest  in  the  Oriental 
religions  which  prepared  him  later  to  be  an  apos- 
tle of  Christianity  to  China. 

Another  teacher  who  left  a  lasting  mark  upon 
Bashford  was  Professor  L.  B.  Monroe,  of  the 
School  of  Oratory  of  Boston  University.  After 
graduating  in  theology  in  two  years,  with  first 
honors  in  his  class,  Bashford,  feeling  dissatisfied 
with  his  preparation  for  his  life  work,  entered  the 
School  of  Oratory,  of  which  Professor  Monroe  was 
dean.  "No  other  teacher,"  writes  Bashford,  "ever 
developed  the  spiritual  and  the  observing  side  of 


THE  STUDENT  OF  THEOLOGY  51 


life  as  did  Professor  Monroe.  His  whole  influence 
was  to  quicken  the  spiritual  life  rather  than  to 
mold  the  expression.  A  Swedenborgian  in  faith,  he 
was  unquestionably  a  saint  and  prophet  of  the  soul 
who  influenced  my  life  profoundly."  Here  he  also 
met  Professor  Alexander  Graham  Bell,  the  inven- 
tor of  the  telephone.  Bashford's  work  in  the  School 
of  Oratory  won  for  him  the  honor  place  on  the 
commencement  program.  On  this  occasion  Ralph 
Waldo  Emerson,  James  T.  Fields,  and  other 
eminent  literary  men  were  present.  When  called 
upon  to  speak,  Mr.  Emerson  pointed  his  finger 
toward  Bashford,  saying,  "That  young  man  who 
spoke  on  Oratory  embodied  the  substance  of  elo- 
quence in  his  speech.    Follow  his  directions." 

On  completing  his  course  in  the  School  of  Ora- 
tory Bashford  still  felt  unwilling  to  enter  upon 
the  work  of  the  ministry  without  fuller  prepara- 
tion. Consequently  he  became  a  candidate  for 
the  doctorate  in  philosophy.  It  was  in  the  School 
of  All  Sciences  of  the  University  that  he  came 
under  the  influence  of  Borden  P.  Bowne,  who 
was  at  the  beginning  of  his  distinguished  career 
as  a  teacher  of  philosophy.  Professor  Bowne's 
book  on  Herbert  Spencer's  philosophy  had  made 
a  profound  impression.  His  classroom  lectures 
then  embodied  the  principles  of  idealism  and  per- 
sonalism  in  philosophy  so  convincingly  set  forth 
in  his  later  publications.   The  question  of  the  rela- 


52  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


tion  of  the  established  results  of  modern  science 
to  the  Christian  faith  was  disturbing  the  minds 
of  many.  Some  accepted  the  materialistic  phil- 
osophy of  Spencer  and  could  find  no  intellectual 
standing  place  for  the  Christian  faith,  while  others 
in  a  panic  wildly  denounced  modern  science  as 
antichristian.  In  this  struggle  between  a  crude 
materialistic  philosophy  and  a  rational  doctrine  of 
theistic  evolution  Professor  Bowne  made  an  in- 
valuable contribution  to  Christian  thinking.  In 
the  light  of  Bowne's  idealistic  philosophy  the 
established  results  of  modern  science  are  accepted 
to-day  without  in  the  least  invalidating  the  claims 
of  the  Christian  faith.  In  helping  men  to  the  in- 
sight that  life  is  larger  than  logic  and  cannot  be 
explained  by  any  a  priori  philosophic  formulae, 
Professor  Bowne  has  made  immensely  for  sound 
thinking  and  for  vital  religious  belief.  The  intel- 
lectual mark  of  Bowne  was  upon  Bashford  as  well 
as  upon  hundreds  of  other  Christian  thinkers  in 
America  to-day.  Bashford's  lectures  on  The 
Philosophy  of  Religion,  delivered  to  the  students 
during  his  presidency  of  Ohio  Wesleyan  Univer- 
sity, are  traceable  to  the  influence  upon  his  think- 
ing of  Borden  P.  Bowne. 

Another  powerful  influence  in  the  making  of 
Bashford  the  preacher  was  Phillips  Brooks.  The 
third  Sunday  he  spent  in  Boston  he  heard  Brooks 
preach  in  the  Hall  of  the  Massachusetts  Institute 


THE  STUDENT  OF  THEOLOGY  53 


of  Technology,  where  he  preached  while  Trinity 
Church  was  being  erected.  From  that  time  for- 
ward he  heard  usually  Brooks'  week-night  lecture 
and  one  of  his  Sunday  sermons.  No  finer  tribute 
could  be  given  to  the  influence  of  another  or  to 
the  power  of  the  pulpit  when  there  is  a  man  of 
power  in  the  pulpit  than  Doctor  Bashford  paid  to 
Phillips  Brooks  in  these  words:  "Brooks'  preach- 
ing was  the  most  perfect  embodiment  of  idealism 
to  which  I  have  ever  listened.  Already  I  had 
been  greatly  influenced  by  Emerson's  writings. 
But  Brooks  grasped  me  at  the  point  where  Emer- 
son failed  to  grip  me  by  connecting  idealism 
directly  with  Jesus  Christ.  The  great  contribu- 
tion which  he  made  to  me  was  in  his  illustration 
by  his  life  and  words  not  only  of  the  naturalness 
of  Christianity  but  that  it  is  absolutely  essential 
to  the  completion  of  your  nature.  Moreover,  he 
made  the  Christian  ministry  the  most  natural 
channel  for  the  expression  of  the  idealism  which 
he  held.  My  great  ambition  was  to  do  in  Meth- 
odism for  the  young  ministers  of  my  generation 
what  Robertson  was  doing  in  England  and  what 
Brooks  was  doing  for  the  American  pulpit.  I 
heard  Beecher  several  times,  but  he  did  not  take 
nearly  so  strong  a  hold  upon  me  as  did  Brooks. 
Brooks'  personality  impressed  me  as  the  most 
Christlike  and  his  utterances  as  the  most  nearly 
inspired  of  any  man  whom  I  had  ever  heard.  His 


54  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


great  personal  kindness  to  me  on  a  slight  ac- 
quaintance only  deepened  the  reverence  which  I 
felt  for  him.  My  life  was  more  fully  set  in  the 
channel  of  the  ministry  and  devoted  to  the  preach- 
ing of  the  gospel  through  Brooks'  influence  than 
through  any  other  human  influence,  and  this  in- 
fluence led  me  to  decline  calls  to  other  types  of 
Christian  work  year  after  year  without  the  slight- 
est hesitancy."  The  kinship  in  soul  between 
Bashford  and  Brooks  developed  a  resemblance  in 
the  preaching  of  the  two  men.  Bashford's  torrent- 
like rapidity  of  speech,  halted  at  times  by  a  kind 
of  choking  stammer,  when  his  thoughts  were 
coming  faster  than  his  words,  the  spiritual  earn- 
estness of  his  delivery  were  outward  marks  of 
resemblance  to  Phillips  Brooks.  But  deeper  still 
was  the  inner  resemblance,  for  Phillips  Brooks 
lived  again  in  the  life  of  Dr.  Bashford.  Over  his 
desk  he  always  kept  a  picture  of  Phillips  Brooks. 
If  his  desk  was  moved  the  picture  of  Brooks  was 
always  moved  with  it. 

But  there  were  other  forces  in  Boston  in  the 
seventies  that  made  powerfully  for  the  building 
of  a  preacher.  This  was  the  period  of  Boston's 
intellectual  glory.  Emerson  and  Holmes,  Whit- 
tier  and  Lowell,  Norton  and  Eliot,  Mary  A. 
Livermore  and  Julia  Ward  Howe,  William  James 
and  Wendell  Phillips — what  air  for  a  young 
preacher  to  breathe!    Bashford  frequently  heard 


THE  STUDENT  OF  THEOLOGY  55 


Wendell  Phillips,  a  political  idealist  whose  inde- 
pendent judgment  and  courage  in  advocating  the 
cause  of  temperance,  woman's  suffrage,  and  other 
reforms  made  upon  the  young  preacher  a  strong 
impression.  At  one  time  he  followed  Phillips  in 
a  lecture  trip  in  and  around  Boston,  hearing  him 
deliver  the  same  lecture  to  different  audiences 
and  noting  his  adaptation  of  his  introduction  to 
different  audiences  and  the  perfect  art  with  which 
he  delivered  the  carefully  prepared  lecture. 

Dwight  L.  Moody  held  a  great  revival  in  Bos- 
ton, which  Bashford  attended.  He  makes  this 
discriminating  comment  on  Mr.  Moody's  preach- 
ing: "While  I  was  struck  by  the  marked  limita- 
tions in  Moody's  thought  and  expression  as  com- 
pared with  Brooks';  on  the  other  hand,  I  was 
startled  by  a  practical  application  in  Moody's 
sermons  and  especially  by  their  grasp  on  the 
consciences  of  the  common  people  which  Brooks' 
sermons  lacked.  I  saw  that  while  Moody  had 
lost  immensely  from  lack  of  culture  he  had  gained 
a  very  real  advantage  through  his  knowledge  of 
the  practical  affairs  of  life.  Indeed,  I  was  quite 
inclined  at  one  time  to  devote  my  life  to  evan- 
gelistic work  after  the  example  of  Mr.  Moody." 
But  Bashford  discovered  the  limitations  upon  the 
revival  method  and  also  upon  preaching  alone. 
Through  the  study  of  these  distinguished  preach- 
ers whom  he  met,  and  especially  through  the 


56  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


influence  of  Mrs.  Bashford,  he  came  to  the  clear 
conviction  that  "it  is  not  sufficient  for  one  to 
interpret  himself  from  the  pulpit,  that  the  great 
problem  is  in  the  relation  of  one's  ideals  and  life 
and  that  the  great  work  of  the  Master  consisted 
in  personal  life  and  in  helpfulness  to  others." 

Early  in  his  student  days  in  Boston  Bashford 
had  an  intense  struggle  with  doubt.  The  intel- 
lectual atmosphere  of  the  University  of  Wiscon- 
sin, from  which  he  had  graduated,  was  skeptical. 
Besides,  several  of  his  relatives  and  friends  in  the 
university  were  doubters.  The  first  year  in  col- 
lege he  attended  the  Unitarian  Church.  He 
believed  that  further  investigation  would  compel 
him  to  adopt  the  Unitarian  theology.  "Having 
entered  the  ministry  from  conviction,"  he  said, 
"I  was  determined  to  follow  my  convictions  in 
the  ministry  and  not  to  sacrifice  them  for  the  sake 
of  staying  in  the  church  of  my  father."  Soon 
after  his  arrival  in  Boston  he  heard  James  Free- 
man Clark  and  Edward  Everett  Hale.  The 
preaching  and  the  spirit  of  both  men  impressed 
him  deeply.  Later  he  made  their  acquaintance 
and  learned  to  love  them  dearly.  He  writes:  "I 
was  saved  from  becoming  a  Unitarian  by  the 
following  circumstance:  I  was  surprised  to  find 
that  the  Unitarian  Church  founded  and  supported 
a  Mission  in  Boston  conducted  by  'Father  Tay- 
lor,' and  that  the  Unitarians  always  employed  a 


THE  STUDENT  OF  THEOLOGY  57 


Methodist  for  this  work,  because  Unitarianism, 
according  to  their  statement,  'was  not  suited  to 
that  kind  of  work,  that  while  it  could  minister  to 
the  intellectual  and  to  the  higher  classes,  it  had 
no  power  in  saving  such  people  as  came  to  the 
Seamen's  Bethel.'  This  surprising  statement  left 
no  doubt  in  my  mind  as  to  which  church  has  the 
real  grasp  of  the  truth.  Theological  truth,  like  all 
other  truth,  must  bear  the  scientific  test  of  ex- 
periment and  if  Unitarianism  was  powerless  to 
save  sinners,  then  it  was  not  God's  own  religion. 
That  discovery  had  more  to  do  with  determining 
my  future  course  than  any  other  fact  which  I 
discovered  in  Boston." 

At  last  Bashford  had  found  himself  in  his  future 
life  work.  With  utter  openmindedness  he  had  met 
the  problems  in  the  religious  thinking  of  the  time. 
He  seized  every  opportunity  for  the  broadest  cul- 
ture. Believing  in  the  incomparable  greatness  of 
his  task  as  a  Christian  minister,  he  devoted  all  his 
energies  to  thorough  preparation  for  his  life  work. 
While  in  close  fellowship  with  the  master  minds 
of  his  day,  he  lost  nothing  of  his  wide  human  in- 
terests. He  was  not  educated  away  from  the 
people.  With  thorough  training,  profound  schol- 
arship, and  a  rare  gift  in  public  speech  his  absorb- 
ing ambition  was  to  be  a  great  preacher. 


CHAPTER  IV 


THE  PREACHER  OF  CHRIST 

It  was  as  a  preacher  that  James  W.  Bashford 
came  to  his  highest  distinction.  He  was  an  able 
educator,  scholarly  author,  wise  administrator, 
and  Christian  statesman;  but,  in  and  above  all 
these,  he  was  a  preacher — a  prophet  of  God  to 
the  sons  of  men. 

His  very  manner  in  the  pulpit  gave  his  hearers 
a  sense  of  the  greatness  of  his  message.  He  was 
not  self-conscious.  He  seemed  utterly  absorbed  in 
the  truth  which  he  was  declaring.  From  his 
opening  sentence  his  words  poured  forth  so  rap- 
idly that  slow  minds  were  bewildered.  His  dic- 
tion was  choice,  and  yet  there  was  no  straining 
after  effect.  His  gestures  were  peculiar  to  him- 
self. He  no  sooner  began  to  speak  than  with  his 
right  forearm  in  a  kind  of  chopping  movement  he 
seemed  to  be  opening  the  way  into  the  truth 
which  he  was  interpreting.  When  he  became  en- 
rapt  in  the  delivery  of  his  message,  with  the  rapid 
motion  of  both  forearms  and  a  constant  nodding 
of  his  head,  his  face  radiant  with  an  inner  light, 
his  whole  being  seemed  vibrant  with  his  message. 
He  was  utterly  free  from  any  tricks  of  oratory. 
He  never  posed  before  an  audience.  There  were 
58 


THE  PREACHER  OF  CHRIST  59 

no  attempts  at  humor  or  at  the  dramatic.  His 
eloquence  was  the  simple,  direct,  earnest  utter- 
ance of  a  thoroughly  prepared  speech  with  a 
consuming  spiritual  passion.  His  preaching  com- 
bined the  intellectual  enthusiasm  of  George  A. 
Gordon  with  the  emotional  intensity  of  Phillips 
Brooks  and  the  direct  appeal  of  Dwight  L.  Moody. 

From  the  beginning  of  his  ministry  he  set  out 
to  be  a  great  preacher.  In  his  early  ministry  he 
read  constantly  the  sermons  of  Frederick  W.  Rob- 
ertson, whose  sermons  also  profoundly  influenced 
Phillips  Brooks.  I  have  never  known  a  public 
speaker  whose  preparation  was  more  thorough 
from  the  beginning  until  the  end  of  his  career 
than  was  the  preparation  of  Bishop  Bashford. 
Every  sermon  or  address  represented  his  best 
work.  His  method  of  preparation  reveals  the 
character  of  the  preacher.  He  selected  great 
themes.  From  wide  reading  he  gathered  a  wealth 
of  facts  to  illustrate  his  message  or  confirm  his 
interpretation  of  some  truth.  When  his  outline 
was  thoroughly  worked  out  he  would  write  rap- 
idly the  entire  sermon.  Later  in  his  career,  when 
he  was  absorbed  with  administrative  duties,  his 
preparation  was  none  the  less  thorough.  With 
the  outline  in  his  left  hand,  pacing  the  floor,  he 
would  dictate  to  his  secretary  with  gestures  as 
natural  and  forceful  as  if  he  were  before  an  au- 
dience.   Immediately  after  the  delivery  of  his 


60  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


sermon  he  would  dictate  it  again,  saying  that  he 
gained  as  much  from  his  audience  as  they  gained 
from  him.  Many  of  his  sermons  were  rewritten 
over  and  over  again.  Frequently  on  Saturday 
evening  before  he  was  to  give  a  baccalaureate 
sermon,  he  would  rewrite  the  entire  address. 
Every  public  address  was  his  best  and  freshest 
thinking  on  the  subject  under  discussion.  It  was 
this  great  respect  for  every  audience  and  his 
intellectual  honesty  in  preparation  which  early 
gave  him  high  rank  as  a  preacher.  Dr.  C.  C. 
Bragdon,  for  many  years  head  of  Lasell  Seminary, 
in  Auburndale,  Massachusetts,  wrote  concerning 
Bashford's  preaching  while  pastor  in  Auburndale: 
"For  such  a  little  church  as  ours  many  a  preacher 
would  think  his  littlest  would  do.  Not  he!  He 
gave  us  pure  gold  every  Sunday  and  he  gave  him- 
self— also  pure  gold — all  the  week  through."  An- 
other member  of  this  same  congregation  writes 
after  forty  years:  "The  young  preacher,  self- 
effaced  in  the  greatness  of  the  gospel  message, 
made  each  service  one  of  true  Christian  worship." 
As  a  preacher  he  was  not  given  to  saying  epi- 
grammatic things  that  stuck  in  the  memory.  He 
always  spoke  "with  lucidity  and  cogency,  but  it 
was  not  a  series  of  brilliant  sayings  that  the  au- 
dience took  away  in  their  memory  so  much  as  an 
impression  of  a  man  of  great  faith,  utter  open- 
mindedness,  and  joyous  freshness  of  personality." 


THE  YOUNG  PREACHER 


THE  PREACHER  OF  CHRIST  61 


Every  time  he  spoke  you  felt  something  tugging 
at  your  better  nature. 

The  most  distinctive  quality  of  Bashford's 
preaching  was  the  completeness  of  every  sermon. 
It  had  no  ragged  edges.  The  theme  was  deduced 
from  the  text  of  Scripture,  and  then  developed  by 
straightforward  cogent  argument  and  apt  illustra- 
tion. The  close  of  every  sermon  was  a  concise 
summarizing  of  the  chief  points  in  support  of  the 
truth  the  preacher  was  proclaiming.  From  be- 
ginning to  end  the  impression  grew  upon  the 
hearer  that  the  message  has  to  do  with  my  life. 
Bashford's  sermon  was  never  an  academic  discus- 
sion or  a  hortatory  harangue.  Whatever  the 
occasion  or  the  subject,  Bashford  the  preacher 
always  stood  forth  as  an  interpreter  of  spiritual 
truth  and  as  a  prophet  of  the  unseen  world  ap- 
pealing to  men  to  think,  to  believe,  and  to  act. 

Another  element  in  Bashford's  preaching  was 
the  fearlessness  of  his  thinking.  His  mind  was 
never  fettered  by  a  narrow  creedal  orthodoxy.  He 
believed  that  "the  universe  is  fireproof  and  that 
it  is  safe  to  strike  a  match  anywhere"  in  search 
of  truth. 

While  pastor  of  the  First  Church,  Jamaica 
Plain,  Boston,  complaint  was  made  of  the  doc- 
trinal soundness  of  Bashford  by  Dr.  W.  F.  Malla- 
lieu,  later  a  Bishop  of  the  Methodist  Episcopal. 
Church.    Bashford  had  preached  a  sermon  on  the 


62  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


"Punishment  of  Sin,"  in  which  he  had  affirmed 
the  certainty  of  future  punishment  at  the  same 
time  expressing  his  belief  in  the  possibility  of  a 
future  probation.  When  Dr.  Mallalieu  declared 
his  intention  of  bringing  a  charge  of  heresy  against 
the  young  preacher,  his  prompt  reply  was:  "I  am 
in  the  ministry  in  obedience  to  my  convictions;  I 
certainly  should  not  sacrifice  them  to  remain  in 
the  Methodist  Church  or  in  any  other  Church." 
When  the  charges  were  presented  to  Dr.  L.  R. 
Thayer,  the  Presiding  Elder,  he  asked  Bashford 
to  write  to  him  a  statement  fully  setting  forth  his 
views.  In  response  Bashford  wrote,  February  10, 
1881,  as  follows: 

Dear  Doctor  Thayer: 

I  am  very  glad  for  your  letter  and  will  write  fully. 

I  joined  the  Methodist  Church  at  my  conversion  be- 
cause it  embodied  in  its  doctrine  and  in  its  life  more  fully 
my  views  of  what  Christianity  is  than  any  other  Church. 
.  . .  .  I  hold  closely  to  man's  freedom,  to  his  full  ac- 
countability for  the  use  of  his  freedom,  the  depths  of 
man's  sin,  to  the  reality,  assurance,  and  fullness  of  the 
divine  life  of  the  Christian  through  Christ.  These  doc- 
trines are  to  me  God's  greatest  revelation  to  men,  and  I 
have  preached  this  positive  gospel  more  than  all  doctrines. 
I  am  not  a  restorationist.  But  I  hold  that  God  will  not 
punish  a  man  eternally  for  a  sin  committed  in  time  pro- 
vided the  man  would  gladly  repent  if  he  were  only  able. 
God  punishes  men  in  the  future  world,  not  only  because 
they  sinned  here,  but  because  they  will  not  repent  and  con- 


THE  PREACHER  OF  CHRIST  63 


tinue  to  sin  there.  As  to  what  will  be  the  final  outcome 
of  this  struggle  between  Christ  and  Satan  I  cannot  say; 
but  I  believe  in  some  way  Christ  will  triumph.  This  is  a 
frank  statement.  .  .  .  As  to  my  preaching  in  general 
I  confess  that  I  am  a  liberal  and  progressive  Methodist. 
I  did  not  dream  that  the  Church  was  infallible  in  doctrine 
or  perfect  in  life  when  I  entered  it.  I  am  sure  that  my 
preaching  as  a  whole  presents  a  more  positive,  vigorous, 
and  self-denying  gospel  than  is  generally  practiced  or 
even  preached  in  the  Methodist  Church.  .  .  .  The 
earnestness  of  my  church  and  the  number  converted  under 
my  ministry  are  some  proof  that  I  have  not  been  preach- 
ing a  loose  gospel. 

Of  course  the  Church  can  sever  my  relationship  when- 
ever it  thinks  best.  If  I  am  allowed  to  remain  in  the 
Church,  I  am  determined  while  I  am  in  the  ministry  to  be 
true  to  my  convictions. 

Doctor  Thayer  was  a  wise  man.  He  care- 
fully read  Bashford's  statement,  locked  it  in  his 
drawer,  and  informed  the  committee,  after  in- 
vestigating their  charges,  that  he  was  clear  in  his 
own  mind  that  Bashford  had  a  right  to  preach  in 
the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church.  This  position 
was  supported  by  Dr.  W.  F.  Warren  and  Dean 
Latimer,  who  urged  the  young  preacher  to  be 
guarded  in  his  statements,  but  not  for  a  moment 
to  surrender  his  right  to  preach  in  the  Methodist 
Episcopal  Church.  The  heresy  hunters  were  soon 
silenced  by  the  full  proof  which  he  gave  of  his 
ministry  and  became  his  strong  personal  friends. 


64  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


At  the  beginning  of  his  ministry  Bashford  asked 
himself  in  what  terms  the  Christian  message  can 
be  set  forth  to  appeal  most  effectively  to  the 
mind  of  his  day.  The  doctrine  of  evolution  was 
then  in  the  foreground  of  men's  thinking.  He 
had  the  wisdom  to  see  that  he  must  interpret  the 
gospel  of  Christ  in  the  light  of  the  dominant 
thought  of  the  times.  And  so  he  set  out  to  mas- 
ter the  literature  on  the  subject  of  evolution.  The 
faith  of  many  was  being  unsettled  by  a  material- 
istic conception  of  evolution.  Bashford  rendered 
a  valuable  service  to  the  religious  thinking  of  his 
time  by  showing  the  religious  significance  of  phys- 
ical evolution  when  given  a  theistic  interpreta- 
tion. His  contention  was  always  that  science  is 
not  a  foe,  but  an  ally  of  the  Christian  faith. 

One  writes  concerning  his  preaching  while  pas- 
tor of  Chestnut  Street  Church,  Portland,  Maine: 
"He  gave  new  interpretations  of  old  truths.  Many 
of  his  views  were  ahead  of  his  time;  in  that,  they 
might  be  called  radical.  But  they  were  presented 
in  such  a  way  that  they  fortified  the  Christian 
faith  and  strengthened  one's  belief." 

The  spirit  of  Bashford  as  a  Christian  minister 
is  nobly  expressed  in  a  letter  at  the  time  of  the 
heresy  agitation:  "The  real  difficulty  is  selfish- 
ness. Ambition,  the  love  of  praise  and  desire  for 
advancement  among  ministers,  and  worldliness  in 
the  church  is  the  greatest  hindrance  to  the  speedy 


THE  PREACHER  OF  CHRIST  65 


conversion  of  the  world.  I  cannot  imagine  Paul 
looking  out  for  the  best  church  or  thinking  of  his 
salary.  I  am  determined  while  I  remain  in  the 
ministry  to  be  faithful  to  my  convictions  on  this 
point."  The  lifelong  career  of  Bashford  was  a 
rebuke  to  all  self-seeking  ministers  whose  ambi- 
tion for  place  eats  away  their  power  for  useful 
service  like  a  canker.  In  the  last  year  of  his  life 
he  bore  this  testimony:  "After  deciding  to  accept 
the  call  to  the  ministry  till  the  present  I  think  I 
can  say  my  passion  has  been  for  truth  rather 
than  for  place  or  for  position  before  men.  I 
thought  and  dreamed  and  desired  to  be  a  preacher. 
I  felt  practically  no  ambition  at  all  for  the  epis- 
copacy until  the  place  came  to  me.  My  desire 
was  not  for  larger  audiences,  but  to  know  the 
truth — the  truth  which  shall  make  men  free. 
Frederick  Robertson  and  Phillips  Brooks  awak- 
ened within  me  the  passion  for  preaching;  War- 
ren and  Latimer,  the  passion  for  teaching.  The 
thought  of  my  being  called  to  the  episcopacy 
filled  me  far  more  with  dread  than  with  joy,  as  I 
did  not  see  how  it  could  help  me  either  in  my 
search  for  truth  or  in  my  ministrations  to  men." 

This  reveals  the  secret  of  his  power  as  a 
preacher.  Whatever  his  theme  he  was  trying  to 
interpret  God  to  men.  Professor  Rollin  Walker, 
of  Ohio  Wesleyan  University,  once  said  of  Bash- 
ford:  "No  matter  what  his  subject,  if  he  begins 


66  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


with  the  multiplication  table,  he  will  wind  up 
with  the  Sermon  on  the  Mount."  Bashford  pro- 
nounced this  the  highest  compliment  his  preach- 
ing had  ever  received.  The  sermon  was  the 
overflowing  of  his  own  soul,  the  flower  of  his 
personality.  He  wrote  to  Bishop  Hurst  in  1889: 
"Real  sermons  grow  out  of  one's  spiritual  life  and 
study  of  the  Scriptures,  out  of  his  spiritual  in- 
sight, and  out  of  the  occasion  which  demands 
them.  .  .  ." 

In  1900  Doctor  Bashford  delivered  an  address 
on  "The  Preacher"  before  the  students  of  Drew 
Theological  Seminary  which  admirably  sets  forth 
his  ideal  of  preaching:  "The  great  work  of  the 
preacher  is  not  so  much  to  give  the  world  new 
light  as  to  show  men  how  they  may  find  power 
in  Jesus  Christ  and  through  the  indwelling  Spirit 
to  live  up  to  the  light  which  they  have.  This 
high  living  is  essential  to  the  prophetic  spirit. 
You  will  never  be  called  to  be  prophets  of  your 
age,  you  will  never  see  visions  and  dream  of  the 
undeveloped  possibilities  of  human  nature,  until 
you  live  up  to  the  light  which  God  has  already 
vouchsafed  to  you.  Truth  is  not  a  commodity 
to  be  put  up  in  packages  called  sermons  and 
dealt  out  to  your  people,  in  return  for  which  you 
are  to  receive  their  applause  and  support.  Traffic 
with  the  truth,  and  you  lose  the  truth.  Instead 
of  striving  to  possess  the  truth,  be  content  rather 


THE  PREACHER  OF  CHRIST  67 


to  let  the  truth  possess  you.  ...  It  was  not  the 
truth  which  Christ  proclaimed,  nor  the  marvelous 
art  with  which  he  proclaimed  it,  but  his  life  which 
was  the  light  of  men.  It  is  not  from  the  Mount 
of  the  Beatitudes,  but  from  Calvary,  that  he  has 
redated  history  and  reorganized  society.  How 
simply  and  marvelously  he  sums  his  whole  life 
up  in  the  text,  T  am  the  way,  the  truth,  and  the 
life!'" 

Bishop  W.  F.  McDowell,  in  the  memorial  ad- 
dress delivered  on  the  day  of  Bishop  Bashford's 
burial,  gives  a  noble  delineation  of  Bashford,  the 
preacher: 

"What  art  he  had:  art  of  seeing  things,  art  of 
saying  things,  art  of  understanding  people,  art  of 
persuading  people — the  real  art  that  linked  him 
with  that  other  minister  of  the  olden  day!  What 
truth  he  had:  truth  of  poetry,  truth  of  history, 
truth  of  science,  truth  of  philosophy,  truth  of  ex- 
perience, truth  of  Christ,  truth  for  life,  truth  for 
death,  truth  for  men,  truth  for  nations,  truth  of 
the  ever-living  God,  truth  for  the  never-ending 
ages!  WTiat  a  personality  he  had  and  was:  the 
beauty  of  the  Lord  upon  him,  full  of  grace  and 
truth,  master  of  himself,  servant  of  Christ, 
prophet  and  seer,  our  shining  archangel,  with  all 
the  dross  of  life  burned  out  of  him,  as  white  a 
soul  as  our  generation  has  seen  or  the  angels 
have  welcomed  on  the  way  to  the  throne!  In 


68  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


all  our  annals  of  preaching  we  have  had  no  truer 
preacher  of  Christ's  gospel  than  this  man  was 
through  nearly  half  a  century.  Being  a  president 
or  a  bishop  was  his  occupation,  preaching  was  his 
flaming,  consuming  passion." 

St.  Gaudens'  statue  of  Phillips  Brooks,  standing 
in  front  of  Trinity  Church,  Boston,  bears  this 
noble  inscription:  "Phillips  Brooks,  Preacher  of 
the  Word  of  God  and  Lover  of  Mankind."  It 
applies  with  equal  appropriateness  to  his  great 
disciple,  James  Whitford  Bashford. 


CHAPTER  V 


THE  PASTOR  AND  THE  CITIZEN 

In  the  fall  of  1875,  while  still  a  student  in  the 
School  of  Theology,  Bashford  began  his  work  as  a 
pastor  in  the  Harrison  Square  Church,  Boston. 
This  was  a  small  mission  organization,  with 
twenty-two  members,  worshiping  in  a  hall  over  a 
fish  market  in  an  unattractive  part  of  the  city. 
The  people  were  poor  and  the  salary  paid  the 
pastor  was  the  meager  sum  of  $350  a  year.  See- 
ing that  the  little  church  could  not  prosper  with- 
out a  building,  he  set  about  raising  money  for  a 
new  church.   It  was  a  difficult  task. 

Just  at  this  time  George  Miiller,  of  Priestley, 
England,  came  with  his  wife  to  Boston  and  told 
the  story  of  the  Miiller  Orphanage.  This  mar- 
velous narrative  of  answered  prayers  seemed  to 
this  young  minister  to  be  the  solution  of  his  prob- 
lem. By  the  very  desperateness  of  the  situation 
he  was  driven  to  prayer.  While  in  prayer,  he 
says:  "I  had  a  conviction  that  I  should  go  and  see 

Brother  F  .    I  went  at  once  and  secured  his 

help.  On  praying  further  other  names  were  im- 
pressed upon  me.  By  a  combination  of  prayer 
and  work  we  succeeded  in  raising  $8,300  before 
69 


70  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


the  dedication  of  the  new  church.  It  was  here 
that  I  learned  the  hard  lesson  of  raising  money 
for  the  church." 

Here  too  he  learned  another  valuable  lesson — 
the  necessity  of  securing  cooperation  of  other 
workers.  One  element  in  his  success  as  a  public 
leader  was  his  ability  in  finding  men  who  would 
share  with  him  responsibility  and  making  them 
feel  that  they  were  indispensable  to  the  success 
of  the  enterprise.  He  early  learned  the  secret  of 
working  with  men  instead  of  for  them.  One  pas- 
toral experience  in  this  church  was  illuminating. 
He  made  the  acquaintance  of  a  new  family  in 
which  there  were  several  children,  one  of  whom 
soon  afterward  died  of  smallpox.  He  visited  the 
home  and  was  invited  to  their  table.  An  eight- 
year-old  lad,  Forrester  by  name,  asked  his  father 
next  day  why  he  did  not  say  grace  at  the  table. 
"The  pastor  said  grace  when  he  was  here  and 
you  are  certainly  as  good  as  he  is,"  the  little 
fellow  continued.  This  produced  deep  conviction 
in  the  heart  of  the  father  and  soon  both  father 
and  mother  were  received  into  the  church.  The 
lad  invited  his  relatives  and  friends  to  the  church. 
Through  him  more  than  a  dozen  persons  became 
Christian  believers.  He  died  suddenly  as  the 
result  of  a  fall  on  the  ice.  A  little  later  Bashford 
met  Edward  Everett  Hale,  who  said  to  him: 
"Write  something  for  our  paper.    Give  us  some 


THE  PASTOR  AND  THE  CITIZEN  71 


of  your  experiences:  no  abstract  stuff."  In  re- 
sponse he  wrote  the  story  of  Forrester  under  the 
title,  "My  Assistant  Pastor."  The  story  so  pleased 
Dr.  Hale  that  he  published  it  in  a  tract,  and  dis- 
tributed over  twenty  thousand  copies. 

In  1878  Bashford  became  pastor  of  the  First 
Methodist  Episcopal  Church,  Jamaica  Plain,  a 
small  congregation,  with  a  membership  of  thirty- 
five,  most  of  whom  were  women.  The  church 
was  mortgaged  for  several  thousand  dollars.  The 
congregation  was  poor.  Few  if  any  owned  the 
houses  in  which  they  lived.  The  courageous  faith, 
untiring  work,  and  wise  leadership  of  Bashford 
saved  the  church,  and  paid  the  indebtedness  of 
$7,000  within  three  years.  Here  again  he  achieved 
the  impossible  through  enlisting  the  help  of  in- 
fluential men  who  believed  in  him.  His  enter- 
prise is  shown  by  this  incident.    He  had  heard  of 

Mr.  N  ,  who  had  the  reputation  of  being  one 

of  the  wealthiest  and  one  of  the  stingiest  men  in 
Boston.  Bashford  said:  "I  had  an  impression 
that  I  ought  to  see  him.  I  was  advised  not  to  go, 
as  he  would  probably  lose  his  temper  and  insult 
me.  I  told  him  the  desperate  condition  in  our 
church  and  that  I  had  an  inward  conviction  he 
would  not  refuse  my  request."  His  reply  was: 
"I  will  speak  to  my  son  about  the  subject  and 
answer  you  in  the  morning."  The  young  minister 
took  the  train  to  a  near-by  town  that  night,  ar- 


72  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


riving  after  the  son  had  retired.  When  informed 
that  a  man  from  Boston  wanted  to  see  him  on 
important  business,  he  dressed  and  came  down. 

Mr.  Bashford  told  Mr.  N          that  he  wanted 

him  to  advise  his  father  to  give  one  hundred  dol- 
lars to  save  the  church.  He  turned  to  his  desk 
for  his  check  book  and  said,  "Young  man,  I  will 
give  one  hundred  dollars  to  any  man  who  has  the 
courage  and  faith  to  ask  my  father  for  it.  You 
deserve  the  money."  The  money  was  raised,  and 
the  mortgage  was  burned. 

At  the  end  of  the  second  year  of  his  pastorate 
in  Jamaica  Plain  he  was  invited  to  a  large  church 
in  Minneapolis  at  a  salary  three  times  the  amount 
he  was  receiving.  But  believing  that  his  services 
were  more  needed  where  he  was  he  declined  the 
offer.  His  devotion  to  this  heroic  little  church 
was  shown  also  by  his  pledge  of  half  a  year's 
salary  for  the  completion  of  the  fund. 

"The  experience  at  Harrison  Square,"  he  writes, 
"taught  me  the  method  which  I  think  the  Lord 
has  meant  me,  at  least,  to  follow,  and  which  I 
am  inclined  to  think  can  be  worked  by  others. 
That  method  is  to  assume  no  burden  hastily,  not 
to  undertake  any  enterprise  through  personal 
aims,  and  not  to  undertake  it  until  convinced 
that  God  puts  the  burden  upon  one.  Being  con- 
vinced that  he  has  put  the  burden  upon  me,  I 
am  then  sure  that  he  has  some  plan  by  which  the 


MISS  JANE  M.  FIELD 


THE  PASTOR  AND  THE  CITIZEN  73 


responsibility  can  be  met.  I  then  begin  praying 
and  thinking,  until  plans  are  impressed  upon  my 
mind  with  something  of  divine  conviction,  and 
oftentimes  in  connection  with  the  plans  the  names 
of  persons,  and  even  the  amounts  which  they 
ought  to  give,  are  impressed  upon  me.  In  not 
every  case  has  the  man  responded  to  my  appeal, 
because  God  does  not  overslaugh,  or  permit  us  to 
overslaugh,  the  moral  freedom  of  his  other  chil- 
dren. But  in  all  such  cases  he  goes  before  and 
prepares  the  way  for  us.  It  was  in  this  way — by 
not  being  disobedient  to  the  heavenly  vision — 
that  the  $8,000  for  the  Parkman  Street  Church 
was  raised,  and  a  little  later  the  $7,200  for  the 
Jamaica  Plain  Church." 

It  was  while  Bashford  was  a  pastor  in  Jamaica 
Plain  that  his  marriage  to  Miss  Jane  Field  oc- 
curred. Her  influence  in  shaping  his  future  course 
and  inspiring  his  work  was  inestimable.  It  was 
shortly  after  his  marriage  that  he  was  invited  by 
Professor  Monroe  to  accept  a  position  in  the 
School  of  Oratory  at  a  generous  salary.  He  de- 
clined the  offer,  believing  that  he  was  called  to 
the  ministry  and  not  to  be  a  teacher  of  oratory. 
His  talents  were  being  widely  recognized.  He 
makes  this  interesting  record  concerning  the  last 
year  of  his  Jamaica  Plain  pastorate:  "My  happy 
marriage,  the  raising  of  the  church  debt,  the  lift- 
ing of  the  cloud  of  heresy,  the  trip  to  Europe, 


74  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


together  with  my  admission  to  the  New  England 
Conference  on  the  ground  that  I  had  built  one 
church  and  saved  another,  made  this  pastorate 
even  more  delightful  than  the  one  at  Harrison 
Square." 

Early  in  his  ministry  Bashford  appeared  as  a 
pioneer  in  great  causes.  He  was  deeply  inter- 
ested in  the  unpopular  woman  suffrage  move- 
ment and  in  the  temperance  reform.  On  the 
anniversary  of  the  Woman  Suffrage  Society  in 
Boston  he  was  invited  to  speak  on  the  platform 
with  Wendell  Phillips  and  Mrs.  Mary  A.  Liver- 
more.  Mr.  Phillips  began  by  saying  that  the 
convictions  of  the  American  people  rested  upon 
the  Bible  as  the  Word  of  God  and  that  Mr.  Bash- 
ford's  argument  on  the  Bible  and  Women  would 
do  more  to  win  the  battle  for  equality  for  women 
in  the  church  and  in  the  nation  than  all  the  argu- 
ments which  he  and  Mrs.  Liver  more  might 
present.  In  the  closing  paragraph  of  this  ad- 
dress, entitled  "The  Bible  for  Woman  Suffrage," 
Bashford  concludes  his  argument  as  follows: 

"It  may  be  that  not  one  woman  in  a  hundred 
cares  to  enter  the  law,  or  medicine,  or  the  min- 
istry, but  we  insist  in  her  case,  as  we  insisted  in 
the  case  of  the  Africans,  that  every  avenue  be 
thrown  open  on  similar  conditions  to  all,  and 
that  each  human  being  shall  be  free  to  sow,  and 
then  reap  what  he  or  she  has  sown.    Society  has 


THE  PASTOR  AND  THE  CITIZEN  75 


a  right  to  self-preservation,  and,  for  the  good  of 
all,  may  impose  restrictions  and  adopt  regulations, 
under  which  each  individual  may  practice  medi- 
cine, or  vote,  or  do  any  other  work.  But  these 
regulations  must  apply  to  all  alike.  For  society 
to  say  that  no  Jew,  that  no  German  shall  prac- 
tice medicine,  that  no  colored  man  shall  preach 
the  gospel,  or  that  no  woman  shall  practice  law 
or  cast  a  vote  because  she  is  a  woman,  is  simply 
an  impertinence  of  tyranny.  Our  cause  rests 
back  upon  the  fundamental  principle  of  Protest- 
antism, the  freedom  of  the  individual  to  work 
out  his  own  destiny  and  take  the  consequences. 
Nay,  it  rests  back  upon  the  fundamental  prin- 
ciples of  the  Bible  and  of  the  divine  government." 
Later  he  was  sent  as  a  delegate  from  Massachu- 
setts to  appear  before  the  Legislative  Committee 
of  the  Rhode  Island  Legislature  to  plead  for  the 
Bill  enfranchising  women.  The  State  House  au- 
ditorium was  crowded  to  the  doors  to  hear  Fred- 
erick Douglass.  Bashford  had  made  his  plea  for 
equality  of  opportunity  for  the  sexes  from  the 
point  of  view  of  the  Bible.  When  Douglass  arose 
to  speak  he  said  if  he  had  heard  such  an  exposition 
of  the  Bible  in  regard  to  the  rights  of  colored  men 
in  his  youth  as  he  had  heard  that  evening,  he 
would  have  become  a  devout  reader  of  the  Word 
of  God  instead  of  passing  through  years  of  skepti- 
cism. 


76  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


As  the  result  of  his  activity  in  this  cause  Bash- 
ford  was  offered  a  position  as  representative  of 
the  Woman  Suffrage  movement  at  a  salary  of 
$2,500  a  year  and  his  expenses.  "But,"  he  says, 
"I  felt  that  the  gospel  with  its  generating  power 
lay  at  the  bottom  of  all  genuine  and  permanent 
reforms,  and  therefore  adhered  to  the  ministry  in 
which  I  was  then  receiving  $350  a  year." 

He  was  a  pioneer  also  in  his  position  with  re- 
spect to  the  recognition  of  women  in  the  church — 
a  position  which  was  vindicated  by  the  admission 
of  women  to  the  General  Conference  of  the  Meth- 
odist Episcopal  Church  in  1900,  and  in  author- 
izing their  license  to  preach  by  the  General 
Conference  in  Des  Moines  in  1920.  Bashford  ad- 
vised his  classmate  in  the  Theological  School,  Miss 
Anna  Oliver,  to  apply  through  the  Quarterly  Con- 
ference of  his  church  in  Jamaica  Plain  for  license 
as  a  local  preacher.  The  license  was  granted  and 
she  was  recommended  to  the  Conference  for  ad- 
mission. When  the  matter  came  before  the  New 
England  Conference,  the  presiding  bishop,  Bishop 
Edward  G.  Andrews,  declared  the  act  illegal  and 
his  decision  was  later  confirmed  by  the  Board  of 
Bishops.  This  action  led  Bashford  to  publish  his 
pamphlet  on  "The  Bible  and  Women."  This  dis- 
cussion forty  years  ago  strongly  sets  forth  the 
scriptural  basis  for  the  rights  of  women  both  in 
the  church  and  in  society — the  recognition  of 


THE  PASTOR  AND  THE  CITIZEN  77 


which  rights  has  been  delayed  by  an  amazing 
stupidity. 

Doctor  Bashford's  pastorate  in  Auburndale  he 
regarded  as  the  least  satisfactory  of  any  of  his  five 
pastorates  from  the  point  of  view  of  the  growth 
of  the  church,  but  as  most  profitable  for  his 
growth  in  intellectual  and  in  preaching  ability. 
During  these  three  quiet  years,  by  constant  study 
and  writing,  he  prepared  himself  for  the  taxing 
duties  of  a  great  city  church.  He  accepted  an 
invitation  to  become  pastor  of  Chestnut  Street 
Church,  Portland,  Maine,  in  1884.  This  was  out- 
wardly his  most  prosperous  pastorate  of  the  five 
which  he  held.  The  amount  of  work  which  he 
carried  was  tremendous.  In  addition  to  preach- 
ing two  sermons  on  Sunday  he  attended  every 
week  nine  other  services,  which  with  funerals  and 
special  services  made  an  average  of  twelve  serv- 
ices a  week  for  eleven  months  of  the  year.  The 
enthusiasm  with  which  his  large  congregation  sup- 
ported his  work  made  its  heavy  burdens  a  joy. 
His  preaching  made  upon  the  people  of  the  city 
a  profound  impression. 

It  was  in  Portland  that  his  moral  courage  as  a 
public  leader  was  challenged.  The  State  of  Maine 
was  then  under  nominal  prohibition  laws,  but  the 
city  administration  of  Portland  was  in  collusion 
with  the  liquor  traffic,  and  saloons  were  permitted 
upon  the  payment  of  stated  fines.    After  care- 


78  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


fully  investigating  the  situation  Doctor  Bashford 
decided  to  engage  in  a  crusade  against  the  saloons. 
He  advised  with  a  few  of  the  leaders  of  the  church, 
and  increased  the  insurance  on  the  church  prop- 
erty. He  tried  to  persuade  the  mayor  to  enforce 
the  law,  but  was  told  that  when  he  had  more 
common  sense  and  understood  politics  better  he 
would  not  fly  into  the  face  of  public  sentiment. 
He  then  called  the  pastors  of  all  the  churches  to- 
gether and  they  decided  upon  the  plan  of  cam- 
paign. Warrants  were  to  be  sworn  out  against 
the  men  who  were  suspected  of  being  in  the  liquor 
traffic.  In  the  meantime  Bashford  had  made  a 
secret  arrangement  with  two  assistant  marshals  in 
the  city  by  which  he  was  to  receive  the  names  of 
all  saloon  keepers  on  the  police  list.  He  swore  out 
the  first  warrant,  and  though  the  search  was  suc- 
cessful, the  other  pastors  failed  to  appear,  and  the 
whole  struggle  was  thrown  upon  Bashford.  The 
fight  was  intense.  Twice  his  house  was  set  on 
fire  and  his  life  threatened.  He  was  advised  in  a 
meeting  of  the  Official  Board  of  his  Church  that 
certain  members  of  the  church  were  surrendering 
their  seats  in  the  church,  due  probably  to  his 
temperance  agitation.  He  replied  by  placing  his 
resignation  in  the  hands  of  the  Official  Board,  at 
the  same  time  informing  them  that  they  must 
look  out  for  the  best  interests  of  the  church  ac- 
cording to  their  judgment,  but  while  he  remained 


THE  PASTOR  AXD  THE  CITIZEX  79 


in  Portland  he  must  be  the  judge  as  to  what  he 
preached  and  as  to  his  conduct  as  a  pastor  in  the 
city.  The  Board  promptly  refused  to  accept  his 
resignation  and  gave  him  a  vote  of  confidence. 
The  Law  and  Order  League  came  to  his  support, 
and  the  result  of  the  crusade  was  the  overthrow 
of  the  officers  in  power  and  the  election  of  men 
pledged  to  enforce  the  law  who  banished  the 
saloons  from  Portland. 

Doctor  Bashford's  leadership  in  that  campaign 
led  to  his  nomination  for  Governor  of  Maine  on  the 
Prohibition  Ticket.  The  nomination  was  promptly 
declined,  only  to  be  followed  by  the  offer  of  the 
nomination  for  Congress  by  the  Prohibition  and 
the  Labor  and  the  Democratic  parties.  Again 
he  declined,  feeling  that  his  call  was  to  the  Chris- 
tian ministry  and  not  to  political  life. 

This  was  at  the  time  of  James  G.  Blaine's 
campaign  for  election  as  President  of  the  United 
States.  At  the  State  election  immediately  pre- 
ceding the  national  election  of  1884  the  State 
was  voting  on  a  State  Constitutional  Prohibi- 
tion Amendment.  Walking  to  the  polls  with 
his  friend,  General  Life,  on  election  day,  Blaine 
said,  "I  did  not  vote  on  the  constitutional 
amendment."  This  fact  soon  became  known 
and  sounded  the  first  note  in  Mr.  Blaine's 
defeat.  Immediately  upon  learning  this  fact  Dr. 
Bashford  went  into  the  field  speaking  against 


80  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


Mr.  Blaine's  candidacy.  Blaine's  campaign  re- 
sulted in  a  signal  personal  and  party  defeat. 
On  one  occasion  in  the  campaign  he  invited  Dr. 
Bashford  to  ride  with  him  in  his  private  car 
from  Fryeburg  to  Portland  and  earnestly  urged 
Bashford  to  support  him  for  the  presidency.  In 
turn  Bashford  urged  Blaine  to  give  his  support 
vigorously  to  the  temperance  cause. 

He  addressed  to  Mr.  Blaine  the  following 
letter: 

Portland,  Aug.  28,  1886. 

Hon.  James  G.  Blaine, 
Dear  Sir: 

Doubtless  you  remember  our  conversation  concerning 
the  Prohibition  Party  on  our  journey  from  Fryeburg  to 
Portland  some  three  weeks  ago.  You  remarked  to  me 
upon  alighting  from  the  carriage  that  you  would  be  glad 
to  discuss  the  subject  with  me  before  an  audience  of  two 
thousand  people.  I  left  Maine  the  next  morning  and  have 
been  busy  with  friends  in  the  west  ever  since.  Upon  re- 
turning I  see  that  you  are  devoting  some  time  to  this  issue, 
so  thought  you  doubtless  meant  to  pay  more  attention  to 
the  issue  than  I  supposed  at  the  time  of  our  conversation. 
If  therefore  it  is  still  your  wish,  I  will  appear  with  you  at 
two  or  three  meetings  and  give  such  reasons  for  the  Pro- 
hibition Party  as  I  may  be  able.  We  will  probably  have 
no  trouble  in  agreeing  upon  the  dates,  places,  length,  and 
order  of  the  speeches. 

Sincerely  yours, 

(Signed)  J.  W.  Bashford. 


THE  PASTOR  AND  THE  CITIZEN  81 


To  this  letter  Mr.  Blaine  made  no  reply.  Party 
opposition  to  any  declaration  concerning  legal 
prohibition  was  no  sooner  made  by  the  Repub- 
lican Party  than  Blaine  immediately  repudiated 
any  connection  with  such  a  movement.  But  for 
his  moral  cowardice  in  supporting  his  convictions 
on  the  temperance  question  he  might  have  been 
elected.  However  that  may  be,  Dr.  Bashford 
rendered  a  valuable  public  service  in  boldly 
attacking  the  position  of  an  ambitious  political 
opportunist. 

Bashford  had  in  him  the  blood  of  a  reformer. 
He  discerned  reliably  the  moral  principles  in 
every  issue.  Loyal  to  his  own  convictions  he 
would  challenge  any  evil  with  heroic  hardihood. 
But  the  most  remarkable  thing  in  his  reform 
activities  was  his  thoroughness:  first,  the  thor- 
oughness with  which  he  studied  the  question 
until  he  discovered  the  fundamental  principles 
upon  which  the  cause  rested;  and,  second,  the 
thoroughness  with  which  he  committed  himself  to 
the  support  of  whatever  cause  he  espoused.  He 
was  a  strong  believer  in  the  national  prohibition 
of  the  liquor  traffic.  In  the  Presidential  election 
of  1896  he  clashed  with  the  leaders  of  the  Pro- 
hibition Party  on  the  ground  of  their  appeal  to 
the  voters  of  the  country  on  the  sole  issue  of 
prohibition.  His  contention  was  that  the  national 
government  cannot  be  run  on  a  single  issue,  how- 


82  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


ever  important  the  issue  may  be;  and  a  party 
that  has  not  the  wisdom  and  the  courage  to 
declare  itself  on  other  great  national  problems, 
such  as  finance,  the  tariff,  immigration,  and 
international  relationships,  does  not  deserve  sup- 
port. This  attitude  was  a  part  of  the  thorough- 
ness with  which  he  went  into  every  question. 

Following  his  pastorate  in  Portland  Doctor 
Bashford  was  called  to  Delaware  Avenue  Method- 
ist Episcopal  Church,  Buffalo.  In  the  interval  of 
the  few  months  between  these  pastorates  he  and 
Mrs.  Bashford  made  their  second  trip  to  Europe 
for  rest  and  study.  They  sailed  from  New  York 
to  Genoa  and  spent  most  of  the  time  in  Italy, 
Switzerland,  and  Germany.  He  was  seeking  to 
familiarize  himself  more  thoroughly  with  the 
latest  work  of  biblical  scholarship.  During  his 
visit  he  attended  the  lectures  of  some  of  the 
noted  scholars  of  Europe — among  them,  Pro- 
fessor Francis  Delitzsch,  Professor  Luthardt,  Pro- 
fessor Weiss  of  Berlin.  The  story  of  his  acquaint- 
ance with  Professor  Godet,  the  noted  New 
Testament  scholar,  deserves  to  be  recorded.  Pro- 
fessor Godet  in  telling  the  story  of  his  own  reli- 
gious experience,  said  he  had  been  deeply  influenced 
by  the  German  pietists  who  had  produced  so 
profound  an  impression  upon  John  Wesley  a 
hundred  years  earlier.  He  told  also  of  his  great 
desire  to  visit  America,  and  that  he  had  prayed 


THE  PASTOR  AND  THE  CITIZEN  83 


that  the  way  might  open  for  him  to  come.  When 
informed  of  his  election  as  a  delegate  to  the 
World's  Christian  Alliance  Conference  which  met 
in  New  York,  on  examining  his  motives  he  found 
that  he  was  coming  to  America,  not  for  the  serv- 
ice which  he  believed  he  could  render  the  confer- 
ence, because  he  spoke  English  so  imperfectly, 
nor  for  the  spiritual  benefit  which  he  hoped  to 
receive  from  the  conference,  as  he  understood 
English  imperfectly;  but  he  was  coming  because 
of  a  dream  which  he  had  cherished  from  his  boy- 
hood to  see  Niagara  Falls.  Becoming  aware  that 
he  was  going  from  the  wrong  motive  he  declined 
to  accept  the  election,  and  said,  "Now  I  am  too 
old  to  go."  Such  rare  conscientiousness  in  personal 
conduct  helps  to  interpret  the  spiritual  insight  of 
Godet's  writings. 

On  the  occasion  of  his  first  visit  to  Professor 
Godet,  Doctor  and  Mrs.  Bashford  were  invited 
to  dine  the  next  day.  At  the  table  he  offered 
wine  to  Mrs.  Bashford  which  she  declined.  WThen 
Doctor  Bashford  also  declined  wine,  Professor 
Godet,  with  an  injured  look  upon  his  face,  said,  "It 
is  permissible  for  a  lady  to  decline  wine,  but  not 
pardonable  for  a  gentleman."  Doctor  Bashford 
apologized  and  told  his  host  that  he  was  the 
pastor  of  a  church  at  home  with  many  young 
people  in  it,  and  that  he  would  not  do  away  from 
home  what  he  would  not  do  with  them  there, 


84  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


and  for  their  sakes  he  begged  hirri  to  excuse  his 
seeming  breach  of  hospitality.  The  professor's 
face  lighted  up  and  he  thanked  his  guest  for 
declining  wine  after  learning  that  it  was  done  for 
the  sake  of  others. 

During  his  pastorate  of  three  years  in  Buffalo 
Bashford  came  to  the  height  of  his  ability  as  a 
preacher.  Large  congregations  and  a  constantly 
growing  church  membership  witnessed  to  the 
power  of  his  ministry.  But  he  did  not  make 
the  pulpit  an  end  in  itself.  "One  of  the  most 
notable  features  of  his  pastorate  in  Buffalo," 
wrote  one  of  his  parishioners,  "was  his  careful 
instruction  of  and  inspiring  influence  over  the 
young  people."  He  won  them  to  himself  that  he 
might  win  them  to  Christ. 

An  important  factor  in  Doctor  Bashford's 
success  in  the  pastorate  was  his  pastoral  care  of 
the  people  to  whom  he  ministered.  He  instructed 
the  children;  he  became  the  friend  of  the  young 
people  who  sought  his  counsel  and  were  inspired 
by  his  example;  he  visited  the  sick  and  the  poor, 
and  was  the  wise  friend  of  the  rich.  The  secret 
of  his  success  as  a  pastor  was  his  genuine  interest 
in  everybody  and  his  sense  of  responsibility  as  a 
spiritual  shepherd. 

Hearing  of  the  death  of  the  young  daughter 
of  one  of  the  missionaries  in  Peking,  Bishop 
Bashford  wrote  this  tender  message: 


THE  PASTOR  AND  THE  CITIZEN  85 


The  Reverend  George  L.  Davis. 
My  Dear  Brother  Davis: 

Juliet  impressed  all  who  came  in  contact  with  her  by  her 
remarkable  spiritual  development.  I  think  that  she  had 
advanced  further  in  the  spiritual  life  than  any  other  child  I 
had  ever  known.  Possibly  her  sufferings  developed  in  her 
this  great  spiritual  maturity.  Possibly,  I  think  it  is  very 
probable,  the  Lord  himself  was  touched  with  her  suffering 
and  the  patience  with  which  she  bore  it,  and  came  closer  to 
her  than  to  any  other  mortal.  At  any  rate,  she  seems  to 
have  lived  a  complete  life  in  the  few  years  she  spent  upon 
this  earth.  I  am  sure  you  and  Mrs.  Davis  are  realizing  the 
presence  of  the  great  Comforter  in  the  great  sorrow  which 
has  come  to  you. 

Fraternally, 

(Signed)  J.  W.  Bashford. 

While  delivering  a  course  of  lectures  in  Boston 
University  School  of  Theology  in  March,  1916, 
Bishop  Bashford  heard  of  the  birth  of  the  little 
son  of  Mr.  Fred  Richard  Brown,  one  of  the  mis- 
sionaries in  Kiukiang,  China.  He  promptly  ad- 
dressed the  following  letter: 

Boston,  Massachusetts, 

March  20,  1916. 

Mr.  Fred  Richards  Brown,  Jr., 

Kiukiang,  Kiangsi  Province,  China. 
Dear  Master  Brown: 

This  letter  is  to  bid  you  welcome  to  this  beautiful  world. 
I  am  sorry  to  tell  you  that  sin  has  entered  the  world  and 
that  many  people,  by  yielding  to  it,  lead  very  miserable 
lives.  I  am  very  glad,  however,  to  tell  you  that  God  loves 
us  and  has  sent  his  Son  to  be  our  Saviour,  and  that  he  sends 


86  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


the  Holy  Spirit  to  our  hearts  very  early  in  life  and  that  if 
we  obey  his  voice  and  avoid  sin,  we  shall  find  the  world  a 
very  beautiful  place  to  live  in  and  a  fine  place  of  preparation 
for  another  vastly  better  and  bigger  world  which  lies  be- 
yond this. 

I  shall  come  to  see  you  some  time.  In  the  meantime,  keep 
goodnatured;  sleep  as  much  as  you  can,  and  play  when  you 
are  awake;  and  learn  to  speak  our  language  as  soon  as  pos- 
sible. 

You  have  another  reason  to  be  thankful,  in  that  God  has 
given  you  good,  Christian  parents.    Follow  their  advice 
whenever  you  are  puzzled  as  to  what  course  to  pursue. 
Cordially  yours, 

(Signed)  J.  W.  Bashford. 

In  A  Son  of  the  Middle  Border1  Hamlin  Garland 
tells  the  story  of  Bashford's  friendly  interest 
which  marked  the  turning  point  in  Garland's 
career.  The  Garlands,  joining  the  land-seekers 
from  the  Middle  West,  had  settled  in  the  plains 
of  Dakota.  Hamlin,  a  raw  country  youth,  de- 
pendent for  a  livelihood  upon  the  labors  of  his 
hands,  discontented  with  the  limitations  of  the 
prairie  farm,  was  ambitious  for  a  literary  career. 
In  the  midst  of  his  perplexity  as  to  his  plan  of 
action,  he  relates  that  Mr.  Bashford,  a  young 
clergyman  from  Portland,  Maine,  visited  their 
town  to  buy  some  farms  for  himself  and  a  friend. 
Hearing  the  Garlands  had  come  from  Wisconsin 


'The  Macmillan  Company,  publishers.  Selections  used  by  permission  of  pub- 
lishers and  author. 


THE  PASTOR  AND  THE  CITIZEN  87 


the  young  minister  called  and  stayed  to  dinner. 
"Being  of  a  jovial  and  candid  nature,"  Mr.  Gar- 
land writes,  "he  soon  drew  from  me  a  fairly  co- 
herent statement  of  my  desire  to  do  something  in 
the  world.  At  the  end  of  a  long  talk  he  said, 
'Why  don't  you  come  to  Boston  and  take  a  spe- 
cial course  in  the  university?  I  know  a  Professor 
of  Literature  and  I  can  also  give  you  a  letter  to 
the  principal  of  a  school  of  Oratory.'" 

After  a  period  of  intense  excitement  over  Bash- 
ford's  offer,  and  of  growing  discontent  with  his 
surroundings,  young  Garland,  contrary  to  the 
advice  of  his  father,  but  with  his  mother's  brave 
"Cheer  up,  I  am  sure  it  will  come  out  all  right," 
decided  to  mortgage  his  land  claim  for  two  hun- 
dred dollars  and  go  to  Boston.  After  several 
months  of  hard  study,  living  in  a  hall  room  on 
the  cheapest  food,  when  his  money  was  almost 
gone,  he  was  invited  by  Mr.  Bashford  to  visit 
him  in  Portland.  Garland  writes:  "I  accepted 
his  invitation  with  naive  precipitation,  and  fur- 
bished up  my  wardrobe  as  best  I  could,  feeling 
that  even  the  wife  of  a  clergyman  might  not 
welcome  a  visitor  with  fringed  cuffs  and  celluloid 
collars."  He  was  kindly  received  by  Mrs.  Bash- 
ford,  and  the  week  spent  in  their  large  house, 
which  seemed  to  Garland  to  have  "a  grandeur 
almost  oppressive,"  was  a  "blessed  break  in  the 
monotony"  of  his  little  den  in  Boylston  Place. 


88  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


As  Garland  was  leaving  Bashford  gave  him  a 
card  to  Dr.  Hiram  Cross,  a  physician  and  an 
intimate  friend  of  Bashford's  in  Jamaica  Plain. 
Doctor  Cross  had  accompanied  Mr.  and  Mrs. 
Bashford  on  their  first  trip  to  Europe.  They  had 
had  their  friendship  cemented  by  their  joint  ill- 
fortunes  in  a  Western  farm  investment.  "Call 
upon  the  Doctor  as  soon  as  you  return,"  said 
Bashford  as  he  bade  Garland  good-by.  "He  will 
be  glad  to  hear  of  Dakota."  Doctor  Cross  gave 
Garland  an  attic  room  in  his  modest  frame  house, 
which  became  his  home  until  his  work  as  a  writer 
won  recognition  in  the  literary  circles  of  Boston 
and  beyond. 

In  a  recent  public  lecture  Hamlin  Garland  told 
with  deep  feeling  the  story  of  his  indebtedness  to 
Doctor  Bashford  in  urging  him  to  seek  an  educa- 
tion, telling  him  the  story  of  his  own  successful 
struggle  as  a  student  with  poverty,  and  later, 
when  money  and  courage  were  both  gone,  inspir- 
ing him  for  the  future  fight  and  introducing  him 
to  fostering  friends. 

This  incident  is  only  typical  of  BasKford's  life- 
long interest  in  and  habitual  search  for  young 
men  and  women  of  promise,  whose  ambition  he 
fired  and  whose  consecration  to  higher  service  he 
inspired.  More  eagerly  than  for  anything  else,  he 
sought  for  young  men  whose  feet  he  first  set  in 
the  ways  of  higher  education,  and  then  called 


THE  PASTOR  AND  THE  CITIZEN  89 


upon  them  to  become  the  servants  of  the  world's 
need. 

Just  before  his  election  as  a  bishop  in  the  Meth- 
odist Episcopal  Church,  Doctor  Bashford  received 
a  letter  from  his  friend  and  colleague  in  Ohio 
Wesleyan  University,  Professor  C.  B.  Austin, 
which  admirably  characterizes  Bashford's  lifelong 
career  in  the  ministry.  "Is  there  any  work  in  the 
world  that  is  greater  or  counts  more  for  the  King- 
dom than  that  of  bringing  your  own  faculties, 
intellectual  and  spiritual,  to  bear  upon  the  choice 
young  women  and  men  of  the  land,  and  by  daily 
contact  developing  in  them  the  best  type  of 
Christian  character,  and  at  last  sending  them 
forth  as  true  soul  winners  in  every  proper  voca- 
tion of  life?" 

When  he  became  one  of  the  chief  pastors  in  the 
church  he  took  upon  his  heart  all  the  mission- 
aries and  their  families  and  was  ever  solicitous  for 
their  welfare.  As  minister,  college  president,  and 
bishop,  the  pastoral  passion  always  dominated 
him. 


CHAPTER  VI 


THE  COLLEGE  PRESIDENT 

In  1889  James  W.  Bashford  became  President 
of  Ohio  Wesleyan  University  at  Delaware,  Ohio. 
The  first  invitation  of  the  Board  of  Trustees, 
presented  by  David  S.  Gray  and  ex-President 
Rutherford  B.  Hayes,  was  declined.  Doctor  Bash- 
ford  had  a  strong  conviction  that  the  pulpit  was 
his  field  of  labor.  In  the  following  letter  to  his 
friend,  Dr.  John  A.  Story,  he  states  the  reasons 
which  led  to  this  conviction: 

First,  before  completing  my  professional  courses  I  had 
several  opportunities  to  enter  upon  educational  work.  I 
then  thought  the  matter  over  very  fully  and  reached  the 
conclusion  that  the  deepest  need  of  men  was  not  more 
light,  but  spiritual  power  to  live  up  to  the  light  they  have. 
Socrates  thought  the  fundamental  trouble  with  humanity 
was  ignorance,  and  so  he  became  a  philosopher.  Christ 
thought  our  fundamental  trouble  was  sinfulness,  and  so  he 
aimed  to  change  the  heart  and  renew  our  wills.  True  edu- 
cation touches  the  whole  man — body,  mind,  and  soul. 
The  educator,  therefore,  touches  the  will,  while  his  direct 
aim  is  to  expand  the  intellect  and  to  enlarge  the  realms 
of  truth.  So  also  the  preacher  works  through  the  in- 
tellect, but  his  primary  aim  is  to  renew  the  will  and 
strengthen  the  spiritual  nature.  Believing  that  spiritual 
90 


THE  COLLEGE  PRESIDENT  91 


work  was  most  needed  by  the  world  I  reached  the  conclu- 
sion in  the  earl}'  struggle  over  this  question  to  give  myself 
wholly  and  directly  to  that  work  rather  than  to  accom- 
plish it  indirectly  by  spending  my  energies  in  planning 
and  carrying  out  mental  work.  This  early  course  of 
reasoning  has  all  recurred  to  me  during  the  past  few  days 
and  has  had  its  effect  upon  the  present  decision. 

Second,  I  have  spent  thirteen  years  in  the  pastorate; 
seven  since  I  took  my  last  degree.  It  is  not  wise  for  one 
to  change  his  life  plans  after  devoting  himself  to  them 
entirely  for  six  or  eight  years,  and  partially  for  thirteen 
years,  unless  convinced  that  his  original  plan  was  wrong. 
I  still  cherish  my  original  conviction  that  preaching  is 
more  essential  than  teaching,  and  have  had  so  many 
tokens  of  the  divine  favor  in  this  work  that  I  fear  to  leave 
it  without  a  distinct  call  from  the  Lord. 

Third,  you  and  I  believe  that  the  ministry  is  the  most 
important  agency  in  bringing  in  the  kingdom  of  heaven 
upon  earth.  But  the  preaching  force  in  our  Church  has 
been  greatly  weakened  and  has  lost  much  of  its  inspiration 
by  the  calling  of  our  best  men  to  editorial  and  educational 
positions,  secretaryships,  etc.,  and  by  the  advancement 
of  men  from  these  positions  to  the  bishopric.  Through- 
out our  Church  the  ministerial  office  is  felt  to  be  sec- 
ondary. 

In  view  of  this  serious  problem  some  persons  must 
make  the  sacrifice  in  order  to  restore  the  pastorate  in  the 
Methodist  Episcopal  Church  to  its  place  of  honor.  Loy- 
alty to  the  pastorate  and  to  the  distinctive  work  of  sav- 
ing men  seems  to  me  to  demand  my  adherence  to  the  plan 
of  life  which  I  adopted  twelve  or  fifteen  years  ago  and  in 
which  I  have  spent  a  third  or  a  fourth  of  my  days  of 
service  upon  earth. 


92  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


The  renewal  of  the  invitation  after  the  lapse 
of  several  months  was  followed  by  letters  from 
many  prominent  men  in  the  church  urging  him 
to  accept  the  college  presidency.  The  following 
letter  received  from  his  old  teacher  and  friend, 
President  William  F.  Warren,  made  upon  his 
mind  a  strong  impression: 

My  dear  Bashford: 

Your  letter  does  credit  to  your  head  and  heart.  Every 
word  you  say  about  the  pulpit — its  need  and  possibilities 
in  our  Church — is  most  true  and  I  sympathize  most  deeply 
with  you  in  the  work  that  through  unbroken  years  you 
could  steadily  march  up  to  your  highest  possibilities  along 
that  line.  Nevertheless,  when  I  remember  that  that  would 
give  to  the  Church  but  one  great  gospel  herald  in  place 
of  the  scores  and  hundreds  she  is  waiting  for,  and  that 
these  scores  and  hundreds  are  congregated  in  the  halls 
of  the  Ohio  Wesleyan  to  be  "made  or  marred"  by  the  in- 
fluence that  can  be  brought  to  bear  upon  them  at  that 
place,  I  cannot  fail  to  see  and  feel  that  at  that  point  you 
can  do  more  than  anywhere  else.  For  months  I  have 
felt  sure  that  Providence  would  bring  it  round  and  that 
in  the  end  you  would  see  it  to  be  providential.  Professors 
Bowne,  Townsend,  Buell,  Huntington,  all  are  of  one  mind, 
and  say  that  you  should  accept  the  call  and  see  in  it  a 
larger  and  more  effective  fulfillment  of  your  aspirations. 

How  well  I  can  appreciate  your  reluctance.  Never- 
theless, "it  is  not  in  man  that  walketh  to  direct  his  steps." 
Several  times  in  my  own  years  have  cherished,  and  I  think, 
unselfish  life  plans  been  overruled  and  I  dare  not  say  that 
I  was  wiser  than  the  Providence  which  did  it.    Very  likely 


THE  COLLEGE  PRESIDENT  93 


it  would  be  so  with  you.    I  remember  saying  many  years 
ago  that  a  college  presidency  would  be  your  destination. 
Take  our  blessing  and  good  wishes  ! 

Faithfully, 

W.  F.  Warken. 

The  atmosphere  of  the  university  described  by 
the  venerable  and  saintly  ex-President  Frederick 
Merrick  made  a  strong  appeal  to  Doctor  Bash- 
ford. 

Delaware,  Ohio, 

April  19,  1889. 

My  dear  Brother: 

Should  your  lot  be  among  us  in  the  presidency  of  the 
University,  you  may  be  sure  you  would  receive  a  warm 
reception :  and  allow  me  to  say  that  you  would  find  your- 
self in  a  center  from  which  your  influence  would  flow  out 
to  bless  humanity  in  the  ends  of  the  earth.  It  would  be 
a  position  of  toil  and  anxious  care,  but  toil  and  anxiety 
which  bring  a  rich  reward.  I  am  realizing  this  now  as  I 
could  not  when  passing  through  them.  Letters  are  com- 
ing to  me  from  all  quarters  of  the  globe  with  thanks  for 
any  little  good  I  may  have  done  the  writers  in  their  prep- 
aration for  their  life  work. 

I  am  thoroughly  impressed  with  the  conviction  that  this 
is  your  divinely  appointed  field  of  labor,  at  least  for  a 
season.  If  it  be  so,  may  all  work  together  harmoniously 
to  that  end.  I  should  like  much  to  see  you  seated  in  the 
chair  I  once  so  unworthily  occupied,  before  I  leave,  which 
must  be  soon. 

Sincerely  yours, 

Frederick  Merrick. 


94  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


During  the  preceding  five  years  he  had  re- 
ceived repeated  calls  to  educational  work.  He 
was  offered  the  chair  of  New  Testament  Greek 
in  Boston  University  School  of  Theology.  He 
was  also  invited  to  the  presidency  of  Claflin  Uni- 
versity, Lawrence  College,  the  University  of 
Southern  California,  and  Mount  Union  College. 
The  persistent  invitations  to  educational  work 
along  with  the  opportunity  presented  by  Ohio 
Wesleyan  University  led  him  to  think  that  this 
urgent  demand  for  his  services  should  not  be 
longer  disregarded.  Further,  he  came  to  a  strong 
conviction  that  he  was  not  fully  expressing  his 
life  in  the  pulpit,  but  that  he  could  possibly  give 
a  fuller  interpretation  of  the  gospel  truths  in 
training  young  people  and  in  college  administra- 
tion than  in  the  pastorate.  "I  am  not  in  any 
spiritual  perplexity  in  regard  to  my  external 
work,"  he  wrote  to  Bishop  John  F.  Hurst.  "I 
am  sure  that  my  chief  desire  and  my  only  pur- 
pose is  to  stay  or  go  where  I  can  do  the  most 
possible  for  Christ  and  his  Kingdom,  and  this  is 
the  main  concern  of  life."  When  the  second  invi- 
tation to  the  presidency  of  Ohio  Wesleyan  Uni- 
versity was  unanimously  endorsed  by  the  Board 
of  Bishops,  Bashford  accepted  the  call  and  entered 
upon  his  duties  in  the  fall  of  1889— a  change  in 
his  plans  of  life  which  proved  to  be  providential. 

He  began  his  work  as  an  educator  in  the  prime 


PRESIDENT  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


THE  COLLEGE  PRESIDENT  95 


of  his  strength.  He  was  forty  years  of  age,  full  of 
vigor,  with  an  experience  enriched  by  thorough 
study  and  wide  contacts  with  men.  His  face  was 
so  youthful  in  appearance  when  he  first  came  to 
the  campus  that  he  was  frequently  mistaken  by 
visitors  for  a  student.  The  students  will  never 
forget  his  bubbling  enthusiasm  and  chuckling 
laugh.  On  the  chapel  platform,  in  his  office,  on 
the  campus — everywhere,  he  was  the  same  genial, 
big-hearted,  earnest  man.  President  Hayes  re- 
ported his  first  visit  to  the  college  after  Dr.  Bash- 
ford's  election,  saying:  "The  students  will  like  the 
new  President,  for  he  knows  how  to  laugh." 
Shortly  afterward  he  sent  President  Bashford  the 
following  characteristic  letter: 

Fremont,  Ohio. 

„    „  December  3,  1889. 

My  Dear  Sir: 

My  daughter  and  I  will  welcome  you  to  Spiegel  the 
18th  with  special  pleasure.  Do  not,  however,  put  your- 
self to  inconvenience.  I  will  come  to  you  when  I  have  a 
crotchet  to  push.  I  am  more  and  more  delighted  as  I 
think  of  you  filling  the  place  you  are  in. 
With  all  good  wishes,  I  am 

Sincerely, 

Rutherford  B.  Hayes. 

President  Bashford. 

He  was  of  a  cheerful,  happy  disposition,  always 
easy  of  approach.  We  felt  the  president  was  our 
friend.    No  student  ever  came  to  him  with  his 


96  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


personal  difficulties  without  having  a  sympathetic 
hearing.  The  confidence  which  he  gave  the  stu- 
dents appealed  to  their  nobler  instincts.  His  pre- 
decessor in  office,  the  Rev.  Charles  H.  Payne, 
D.D.,  with  a  brilliant  mind,  was  a  stern  Puritan 
in  character,  an  eloquent  preacher,  a  persuasive 
evangelist,  and  a  rigid  disciplinarian,  who  made 
but  little  appeal  to  the  good  will  of  the  students. 
Some  of  the  college  regulations  which  he  admin- 
istered with  an  iron  hand  tended  to  promote  out- 
ward propriety  rather  than  manly  honor.  Smok- 
ing was  strictly  forbidden.  Dancing  and  theater- 
going were  prohibited.  Formal  permission  was  re- 
quired for  all  social  engagements  between  young 
men  and  women.  Both  church  attendance  and 
daily  chapel  attendance  were  required.  President 
Bashford  did  not  lower  the  ideals  of  the  college, 
but  he  appealed  to  the  self-respect,  to  the  manly 
and  womanly  dignity  of  the  students,  rather  than 
to  a  sense  of  fear  in  the  violation  of  a  rule.  To 
the  students  he  seemed  one  of  the  happiest  of 
men,  who  was  ever  looking  for  the  good  in  others. 
Their  respect  for  his  goodness  and  his  confidence 
in  their  honor  appealed  to  their  better  nature 
mightily. 

When  President  Bashford  went  to  Ohio  Wes- 
leyan  University  he  undertook  his  task  with 
characteristic  thoroughness  and  energy.  He  out- 
lined a  threefold  policy  to  which  he  adhered 


THE  COLLEGE  PRESIDENT  97 


throughout  his  entire  administration  of  fifteen 
years.  First  of  all,  he  undertook  to  provide  ade- 
quate financial  resources  for  a  first-class  college. 
The  institution  lacked  modern  buildings  and 
equipment.  Its  endowment  was  not  sufficient  to 
maintain  a  good  staff  of  teachers.  The  fees  of 
the  students  were  very  low  in  order  to  encourage 
poor  young  men  and  women  in  securing  higher 
education.  Large  numbers  of  the  alumni  had  be- 
come teachers  and  missionaries  and  had  entered 
other  forms  of  public  service,  and  consequently 
lacked  wealth.  President  Bashford  appealed  to 
the  Board  of  Trustees  and  to  the  Methodists  of 
Ohio  for  funds  for  new  buildings  and  endowment. 
The  response  of  the  public  was  slow  but  steady. 
Three  noble  buildings  were  erected  and  the  col- 
lege was  thronged  with  students.  To  arouse  the 
people  of  the  Middle  West  to  the  necessity  of 
making  adequate  provision  for  the  equipment  and 
for  the  support  of  private  colleges  required  vision 
and  leadership  of  a  high  order.  Nothing  less  than 
Doctor  Bashford's  heroic  courage  and  self-sacrifice 
born  of  his  great  faith  would  have  accomplished 
the  task.  One  day  passing  Gray  Chapel,  he  said 
to  a  friend:  "Every  stone  in  that  building  rep- 
resents a  prayer."  He  had  the  vision  to  see  that 
the  denominational  colleges  must  provide  educa- 
tional facilities  second  to  none,  otherwise  they 
can  have  no  worthy  future. 


98  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


His  second  task  in  the  university  was  raising  the 
standard  of  scholarship.  He  found  in  the  faculty 
such  eminent  teachers  as  W.  G.  Williams  and 
Richard  Parsons  in  Greek;  H.  M.  Perkins  in  Mathe- 
matics; L.  D.  McCabe  in  Philosophy;  W.  W.  Davies 
in  German;  W.  0.  Semans  and  E.  T.  Nelson  in 
Science,  and  W.  F.  Whitlock  in  Latin.  He  added 
to  the  teaching  staff  men  of  high  scholarship  with 
recognized  ability  as  teachers  who  supported  his 
policy  of  maintaining  a  school  of  liberal  culture. 
It  was  about  this  time  that  the  unrestricted  elec- 
tive system,  superficial  technical  training,  and 
other  educational  fads  were  coming  into  popular 
favor.  The  curricula  of  many  of  the  schools  were 
a  hodgepodge.  Bashford  and  his  colleagues  with- 
stood the  popular  clamor,  insisting  upon  intellec- 
tual excellence  and  liberal  culture  as  the  only 
worthy  aims  of  the  modern  college. 

There  was  no  interest  of  the  university  to 
which  President  Bashford  gave  more  attention 
than  the  promotion  of  right  moral  and  religious 
conditions.  He  believed  that  a  Christian  college 
should  be  frankly  and  earnestly  Christian.  He 
insisted  upon  having  only  men  of  positive  Chris- 
tian character  as  teachers.  He  provided  for  the 
spiritual  training  of  the  students  with  as  much 
care  as  for  their  intellectual  discipline.  Eminent 
preachers  and  lecturers  were  heard  frequently 
from  the  college  platform.    In  the  daily  chapel 


THE  COLLEGE  PRESIDENT  99 


service,  in  his  monthly  University  Sermons,  and 
in  the  annual  revival  meetings,  the  students  heard 
President  Bashford's  powerful  appeals  for  the 
Christian  life.  It  may  be  questioned  whether 
his  rigid  restrictions  upon  the  personal  conduct 
of  students  were  always  wise,  or  whether  the 
intense  religious  appeal  made  for  the  most  healthy 
and  permanent  results  in  Christian  character 
building.  But  there  can  be  no  question  as  to  the 
wholesomeness  of  the  moral  and  religious  atmos- 
phere which  President  Bashford  created,  or  as  to 
his  foremost  concern — the  spiritual  tone  of  the 
college.  Many  a  student  was  surprised  by  receiv- 
ing in  his  own  room  a  call  from  the  president  to 
talk  with  him  about  the  Christian  life.  Every 
one  felt  that  President  Bashford's  paramount 
interest  was  in  leading  men  to  become  followers 
of  Jesus  Christ. 

One  distinctive  feature  of  President  Bashford's 
work  as  a  college  administrator  was  its  human 
emphasis.  He  had  a  profound  conviction  that 
personal  life  was  the  all-important  thing  and  that 
the  college  was  the  guide  and  builder  of  personal 
character.  Buildings  and  endowment  were  only 
the  means  to  the  high  end  of  personal  develop- 
ment. He  looked  upon  teachers  as  teachers  of 
persons  rather  than  of  subjects.  In  his  relations 
to  the  students  he  was  always  thinking  of  him- 
self as  a  fashioner  of  men's  lives.    On  the  college 


100  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


campus  he  was  consciously  following  the  example 
of  Arnold  of  Rugby,  Bascom  of  Wisconsin,  and 
Warren  of  Boston. 

President  Bashford  went  to  Ohio  a  stranger 
in  the  State.  He  was  unfamiliar  with  the  tra- 
ditions of  the  college.  The  atmosphere  of  the 
denominational  college  was  quite  unlike  that  of 
the  State  university.  He  followed  in  a  noble 
succession  of  men  who  had  left  a  lasting  imprint 
upon  the  college — the  eloquent  Thompson,  the 
saintly  Merrick,  and  the  gifted  Payne.  What 
did  Bashford  do?  Undertake  to  reconstruct  the 
college  by  new  and  radical  measures?  He  was 
too  wise  for  that.  He  sought  rather  to  embody 
the  spirit  of  the  great  worthies  of  Ohio  Wesleyan 
and  to  capitalize  their  work  for  his  own.  Thirty 
years  ago  the  Middle  West  was  swept  by  diverse 
currents  of  religious  thinking.  The  Methodists 
of  Ohio  housed  under  one  denominational  roof 
representatives  of  a  traditional  orthodoxy  and  of 
stereotyped  forms  of  church  activity,  along  with 
representatives  of  a  vital  and  progressive  faith. 
Holding  as  he  did  the  views  of  modern  scholar- 
ship, no  one  contended  more  earnestly  than  did 
he  for  the  faith  of  the  fathers.  He  was  soon 
recognized  as  a  fearless  and  reverent  thinker  bent 
on  conserving  the  rich  doctrinal  and  spiritual 
heritage  of  the  past,  but  moving  steadily  toward 
a  greater  future. 


THE  COLLEGE  PRESIDENT  101 


The  one  divine  gift  necessary  for  successful 
college  administration  with  which  Bashford  was 
richly  endowed  was  common  sense.  He  had  keen 
discernment  of  the  ability  and  motives  of  men. 
He  had  sound  judgment  in  handling  business 
affairs.  His  weakness  was  in  following  up  details. 
He  could  not  be  depended  upon  for  the  minutiae 
of  any  enterprise.  He  created  plans,  and  then 
gathered  around  him  men  who  believed  in  him 
to  carry  out  the  plans.  He  dealt  with  his  col- 
leagues with  openmindedness  and  consideration, 
at  the  same  time  he  so  inspired  them  with  his 
own  enthusiasm  and  devotion  that  they  gave  their 
best.  A  member  of  the  faculty  of  Ohio  Wesleyan 
writes:  "When  I  came  as  a  young  professor  to  the 
institution  he  had  a  way  of  making  me  feel  as 
though  I  were  a  key  man  in  the  life  of  the  college. 
I  have  not  the  slightest  doubt  that  he  equally 
succeeded  in  producing  the  same  impression  upon 
the  two  other  young  professors  who  came  in  the 
same  year.  He  did  not  flatter  us,  but  he  believed 
in  us,  and  would  not  tolerate  the  thought  that 
we  were  to  be  anything  but  influential  and  help- 
ful men  in  the  affairs  of  the  institution." 

As  college  president  his  influence  was  but  little 
felt  in  the  organized  student  activities  of  the  col- 
lege. He  was  interested  in  the  varsity  athletic 
games  and  in  the  religious  work  of  the  students. 
Among  his  colleagues  of  the  faculty  he  was  always 


102  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


a  sympathetic  helper,  never  an  autocrat.  If  occa- 
sion called  for  discipline  he  was  sometimes  severe, 
always  just  and  firm.  He  was  unmoved  alike  by 
either  persuasion  or  intimidation.  The  son  of  a 
prominent  trustee  became  involved  in  a  disgrace- 
ful affair  for  which  he  was  expelled  from  college. 
The  father  at  first  pleaded,  and  later  angrily 
threatened,  but  President  Bashford  was  unmoved 
either  by  his  pleas  or  by  threats. 

But  the  greatness  of  Bashford  as  an  administra- 
tor, whether  in  college  or  in  the  church,  was  not  so 
much  in  his  ability  to  bring  things  to  pass  and  to 
get  the  cooperation  of  other  men  as  in  his  vision. 
He  dreamed  dreams  and  saw  visions  and  set  men 
to  work  with  all  their  might  to  make  them  real- 
ities. He  had  the  faculty  of  inspiring  others  to  an 
extraordinary  degree  with  what  he  saw.  He  gave 
to  the  people  of  Ohio  a  vision  of  a  great  educa- 
tional institution  in  Ohio  Wesleyan,  and  the  en- 
thusiasm of  the  alumni  was  kindled  as  never 
before.  To  the  students  he  became  the  embodi- 
ment of  worthy  ambition  and  self-sacrificing  de- 
votion to  great  causes.  He  was  to  them  a  true 
prophet  of  God,  whose  "dwelling  is  the  light  of 
setting  suns,"  who  on  baccalaureate  Sunday  or 
monthly  lecture  day  "swung  the  gates  of  the 
larger  life  open  before  their  eyes."  His  greatest 
service  as  an  educator  was  not  in  dealing  with 
the  technical  problems  of  education,  nor  in  build- 


THE  COLLEGE  PRESIDENT  103 


ing  the  material  structure  of  an  institution  of 
learning,  but  rather  in  interpreting  to  the  youth 
the  meaning  of  life,  in  stirring  the  great  deeps  of 
their  nature,  and  pointing  them  to  the  shining 
heights.  President  Bashford's  multiplying  power 
in  the  discovery,  training,  and  inspiring  of  the 
coming  leaders  of  the  churches  and  of  the  nations 
cannot  be  measured.  He  was  constantly  impart- 
ing to  others  a  portion  of  his  own  spirit. 

One  of  his  students  writes:  "As  a  student  he 
gave  me  a  world  vision  which  has  never  left  me. 
His  great  personality  has  been  a  constant  inspira- 
tion to  me."  Another  in  a  position  of  high  trust 
said:  "Ever  since  I  entered  Ohio  Wesleyan  he  has 
been  to  me  a  veritable  prophet  of  God.  My  debt 
to  him  is  very,  very  great."  The  witness  of  still 
another  is:  "The  faith  anchor  that  came  to  me 
during  my  college  days  was  largely  given  to  me 
at  the  morning  chapel  and  in  his  Sunday  ad- 
dresses." A  prominent  missionary  in  China  said: 
"Every  time  I  hear  the  hymns,  'Faith  of  our 
fathers,'  and  'Saviour,  like  a  shepherd  lead  us,'  I 
recall  Doctor  Bashford's  fondness  for  these  hymns 
when  he  was  president  of  Ohio  Wesleyan,  also  his 
loyalty  to  the  church  and  his  constant  following 
in  the  footsteps  of  his  Master."  Another  one  of 
his  students,  now  a  distinguished  scholar  and 
teacher,  wrote  recently  after  reading  his  journal: 
"He  is  my  hero  to  a  greater  degree  and  in  a  far 


104  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


deeper  sense  than  ever  before."  Another  student, 
now  an  eminent  physician  in  the  Orient,  wrote: 
"It  was  common  for  students  to  take  their  trou- 
bles to  him,  for  they  knew  that  mere  contact  with 
his  personality  would  help  them.  He  has  been  a 
great  help  and  inspiration  to  me."  "His  influence 
upon  us  students,"  wrote  Helen  Barnes,  National 
Secretary  of  the  Young  Women's  Christian  Asso- 
ciation, "will  never  end.  All  of  us  who  came 
under  his  leadership  and  in  close  touch  with  his 
personality  are  finer  and  bigger  people,  and  I 
hope  that  we  are  able  to  translate  and  interpret 
the  meaning  of  his  life  to  the  world  and  to  carry 
out  in  our  own  lives  as  far  as  we  may  his  high 
ideals." 

"No  man  is  a  hero  to  his  own  valet,"  but  those 
who  knew  Bashford  in  the  intimacies  of  his  office 
and  home  were  most  ardent  in  their  praise  of  his 
goodness  and  greatness.  The  men  who  served  as 
his  secretaries  have  never  ceased  to  feel  the  spell 
of  his  personality.  One  of  these,  the  late  Presi- 
dent Everett  M.  McCaskill,  of  the  Wisconsin 
State  Normal  School,  nobly  voices  their  common 
sentiment:  "I  remember  distinctly  when  Doctor 
Bashford  first  took  up  his  work  as  president  of 
Ohio  Wesleyan  University.  He  seemed  at  once 
to  be  at  home  and  in  the  most  natural  manner 
made  every  one  present  feel  that  a  new  friend 
had  entered  the  school.    Without  any  formality 


THE  COLLEGE  PRESIDENT  105 


he  hung  up  his  hat,  took  his  seat  at  the  office 
desk,  and  in  that  characteristic,  friendly  voice  of 
his,  turned  to  the  nearest  student  and  said,  'What 
can  I  do  for  you?'  That  expression,  I  believe, 
was  the  keynote  of  the  life  of  President  Bashford. 

"His  influence  over  young  people  was  simply 
marvelous.  His  students  got  from  him  their  in- 
spiration. His  associates  caught  a  new  vision. 
His  fellow  citizens  renewed  their  optimism.  His 
was  the  sort  of  life  which  preached  its  best  ser- 
mons in  the  home,  on  the  street,  in  the  office,  and 
in  the  classroom.  Doctor  Bashford  was  not  only 
a  big  man,  he  was  a  good  man." 

In  1896  Doctor  Bashford  was  given  a  year's 
leave  of  absence  from  the  university  in  which  to 
regain  his  health.  The  most  of  the  time  was 
spent  with  Mrs.  Bashford  in  southern  France  and 
in  England.  Writing  to  a  friend  he  says:  "I  am 
cultivating  laziness  as  a  fine  art."  Later  in  the 
year  he  writes  from  London  to  Dr.  J.  M.  Barker: 

"The  battle  for  health  has  been  harder  and 
much  longer  than  I  anticipated.  I  have  suffered 
considerable  pain.  I  am  now  sure  the  movement 
is  in  the  right  direction.  The  old-time  enthusiasm 
is  beginning  to  come  back  and  my  mind  begins  to 
feel  fresh  and  buoyant." 

Writing  still  later  from  southern  France,  his  un- 
resting spirit  triumphs  over  the  ills  of  the  body. 
"I  am  so  much  better  that  I  begin  to  plan  for 


106  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


years  more  of  work  in  Delaware.  I  sometimes 
think  that  I  am  doing  more  this  year  by  prayer 
and  simple  faith  than  I  have  accomplished  before 
by  hard  work." 

In  1900  President  Bashford  was  invited  to  the 
presidency  of  Northwestern  University.  Having 
given  twelve  years  of  service  to  Ohio  Wesley  an, 
it  was  generally  supposed  that  he  would  accept 
the  invitation.  The  attitude  of  the  Board  of 
Trustees  of  Ohio  Wesleyan  and  of  the  alumni  is 
voiced  in  the  following  letter  of  Vice-President 
Charles  W.  Fairbanks  to  President  Bashford: 

Indianapolis,  August  27,  1901. 

My  dear  Doctor: 

I  have  your  letter  advising  me  of  the  meeting  of  the 
board  of  trustees  at  the  Chittenden,  Columbus,  on  Thurs- 
day, the  29th.  I  very  much  regret  I  cannot  be  with  you. 
My  friend,  Mr.  Evans,  of  Minnesota,  died  on  Sunday  last 
and  will  be  buried  Wednesday  afternoon.  I  leave  in  a 
few  hours  to  attend  the  funeral.  Mr.  Evans'  death  is 
very  overwhelming  to  me.    He  was  a  rare  good  man. 

I  cannot  express  to  you  how  earnestly  I  feel  that  you 
should  retain  your  present  relation  to  the  Ohio  Wesleyan 
University.  No  one  has  ever  occupied  the  position  who 
has  more  and  better  friends  than  your  good  self.  There 
is  no  one  in  or  out  of  the  university  who  does  not  earnestly 
desire  that  you  should  remain.  I  wish  I  could  be  present 
and  express  to  the  members  of  the  board  how  earnestly 
I  feel  upon  the  subject.  I  have  written  a  brief  note  to 
Mr.  Gray,  who  is  fully  advised  of  my  feeling  in  the 
premises. 


THE  COLLEGE  PRESIDENT  107 


I  can  only  say  in  conclusion  that  I  do  most  sincerely 
hope  that  you  will  find  that  the  field  of  your  greatest 
service  is  the  one  that  you  now  so  well  occupy,  and  that  it 
will  be  entirely  agreeable  to  you  to  remain  with  us. 
With  best  wishes  and  kind  regards,  I  remain 
Sincerely  your  friend, 

Charles  W.  Fairbanks. 

The  reply  of  President  Bashford  to  Mr.  Wil- 
liam Deering,  President  of  the  Board  of  Trustees 
of  Northwestern  University,  declining  the  presi- 
dency, reveals  his  attitude  toward  his  work: 

Dear  Brother  Deering :  August  29,  1901. 

I  have  passed  through  one  of  the  greatest  struggles  of 
my  life.  Upon  the  whole,  my  duty  seems  to  lie  at  the 
Ohio  Wesleyan,  especially  in  view  of  our  financial  condi- 
tions. The  Lord  has  some  man  better  fitted  for  your 
work  and  with  the  divine  guidance  you  will  find  him  in 
due  time. 

Appreciating  your  confidence  more  thart  I  can  ever  ex- 
press, I  remain  0.  . 

sincerely  yours, 

J.  W.  Bashford. 

The  esteem  in  which  President  Bashford  was  held 
by  the  faculty  of  Ohio  Wesleyan  is  revealed  in  the 
following  letter  addressed  to  him  immediately  after 
his  decision  to  remain  at  Ohio  Wesleyan: 

September  9,  1901. 

Rev.  President  Bashford. 
Dear  Brother: 

The  members  of  the  faculty  of  the  Ohio  Wesleyan  Uni- 


108         JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


versity,  in  view  of  your  decision  to  remain  at  the  head  of 
our  loved  institution,  express  to  you  cordially  and  affec- 
tionately their  great  gratification  at  the  conclusion  which 
you  have  reached. 

We  look  back  to  the  twelve  years  of  your  administra- 
tion with  gratitude  to  God  for  our  constant  and  marked 
growth;  for  the  good  work  which,  with  his  blessing,  we 
have  been  enabled  to  accomplish ;  and  for  our  enviable 
reputation  in  the  church,  and  in  all  lands.  And,  with  you 
still  at  our  head,  we  look  forward  to  yet  greater  growth 
in  the  years  now  before  us. 

We  are  happy  to  be  colaborers  with  you  in  this  great 
work.  We  thankfully  recognize  the  good  hand  of  God 
upon  us  in  the  past ;  and  we  trust  that  our  pleasant  official 
and  personal  relations  with  you  may  long  continue  un- 
broken. 

Fraternally  and  affectionately, 


W.  G.  Williams 
W.  F.  Whitlock 
H.  M.  Perkins 
W.  O.  Semans 
F.  A.  Groves 
Richard  Parsons 
C.  B.  Austin 


W.  W.  Davies 
Robt.  I.  Fulton 
R.  T.  Stevenson 
Will  Hormell 
Clara  A.  Nelson 
Trumbull  G.  Duvall 
Edward  L.  Rice 
J.  W.  Magruder 


Rollin  H.  Walker 
Lewis  G.  Westgate 
William  E.  Smyser 
L.  L.  Hudson 
C.  M.  Jacobus 
Wallace  N.  Stearns 
Sarah  E.  Veeder 


In  a  peculiar  sense  the  name  of  Bashford  will 
always  be  associated  with  Ohio  Wesleyan  Uni- 
versity. The  administration  of  President  Charles 
H.  Payne  marked  the  beginning  of  the  new  epoch 
in  the  growth  of  the  institution  and  laid  the  foun- 
dations upon  which  Bashford  builded  wisely.  The 


THE  COLLEGE  PRESIDENT  109 


growth  of  the  college  in  the  number  of  students,  in 
increased  financial  resources,  in  the  expansion  of 
the  plant,  and  in  defining  the  educational  policy  of 
the  college  was  none  the  less  noteworthy  feature 
of  President  Bashford's  work  in  Ohio  Wesleyan 
than  the  new  prominence  which  he  gave  to  the 
Christian  college  in  the  public  mind.  At  the  time 
when  the  State  universities  were  growing  by  leaps 
and  bounds  the  doubt  was  often  expressed  as  to 
whether  there  is  any  field  for  the  small  college  of 
the  denominational  type.  Bashford,  while  himself 
the  product  of  a  State  university,  believed  the 
Christian  college  is  necessary  to  the  completion  of 
the  educational  system  of  the  country  and  that  it 
had  a  peculiar  responsibility  for  the  training  of  the 
Christian  leadership  of  the  nation.  The  sufficient 
vindication  of  Bashford's  faith  in  the  future  of  the 
small  college  is  the  growing  procession  of  men  and 
women  coming  from  its  halls  to  high  positions  of 
public  service. 

From  the  time  Doctor  Bashford  accepted  the 
presidency  until  his  death  the  college  was  the 
object  of  his  constant  devotion.  When  he  was  over- 
burdened with  the  cares  of  the  church  as  a  bishop 
in  China  he  wrote  a  letter  from  Peking  to  President 
Herbert  "Welch  urging  him  to  begin  at  once  a  cam- 
paign for  funds  for  the  college,  at  the  same  time 
pledging  with  a  reckless  generosity  to  give  seven 
thousand  dollars.    This  was  the  beginning  of  a 


110         JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


movement  which  added  a  half  million  dollars  to  the 
resources  of  the  college. 

On  leaving  Delaware,  Ohio,  for  China,  in  August, 
1904,  he  wrote  in  his  notebook:  "Surely  God  was 
good  to  us  during  the  long  struggle  for  Ohio  Wes- 
leyan  University.  The  people  of  Delaware  also 
have  been  more  than  generous  in  their  appreciation 
of  our  work  among  them.  I  am  greatly  gratified 
over  their  estimate  of  Mrs.  Bashford.  We  leave 
here  the  best  friends  we  have  on  earth  aside  from 
our  own  family.  If  we  die  in  America,  it  is  our 
desire  to  have  our  ashes  rest  in  Delaware.  A  feeling 
of  indescribable  loneliness  comes  over  us  in  leaving 
home  for  good." 

No  monument  or  legend  can  adequately  express 
the  love  he  cherished  for  the  university.  A  noble 
portrait  painted  by  Arvid  Nyholm,  the  gift  of  Mr. 
O.  A.  Wright  of  Chicago,  a  former  Secretary  of 
President  Bashford,  hangs  upon  the  walls  of  Gray 
Chapel.  It  is  fitting,  too,  that  his  body  should  lie 
in  Delaware,  Ohio,  whither  grateful  pilgrimages  will 
be  made  for  a  generation  by  those  who  will  see  a 
light  shining  above  his  grave. 


CHAPTER  VII 


THE  BISHOP  IN  CHINA 

In  Los  Angeles,  May  19,  1904,  James  W. 
Bashford  was  elected  a  bishop  of  the  Methodist 
Episcopal  Church.  His  election  was  the  result  of 
the  spontaneous  conviction  of  the  General  Con- 
ference. He  had  never  sought  the  office  either 
directly  or  indirectly.  In  April  preceding  the  ses- 
sion of  the  General  Conference,  writing  to  his 
friend,  Professor  J.  M.  Barker,  of  Boston  Uni- 
versity, concerning  the  frequent  references  to  his 
possible  election  to  the  episcopacy,  he  says:  "I  will 
not  have  a  breath  of  suspicion  resting  on  me  that  I 
am  trying  to  induce  my  friends  to  go  to  Los  Angeles 
in  my  interest."  His  election  was  received  by  the 
church  at  large  with  great  enthusiasm,  and  by  him- 
self with  marked  humility.  Just  after  his  election 
he  was  asked  by  a  friend,  "How  does  it  feel  to  be  a 
bishop?"  His  reply  was:  "I  wish  my  mother  was 
here  and  I  would  bury  my  face  in  her  apron."  The 
following  letter  from  Doctor  William  F.  Warren 
aptly  expresses  the  confidence  of  the  church  in  his 
call  to  the  episcopacy : 

My  dear  Bishop: 

From  a  telegram  in  a  secular  paper  I  have  just  learned 
of  the  new  commission  that  has  come  to  you.    I  cannot, 
111 


112  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


and  happily  I  need  not,  tell  you  how  welcome  is  the  intelli- 
gence. To  me  it  is  the  fruition  of  hopes  long  cherished, 
the  answer  to  many  a  prayer. 

To  my  brother  it  will  be  an  inexpressible  joy  to  have 
you  as  a  colleague. 

The  "Consecration  Service"  in  Los  Angeles  was  brief 
and  soon  over,  but  there  is  one  which  our  Lord  began  with 
you  before  the  dawn  of  your  consciousness  and  which  he 
will  carry  forward  with  you  night  and  day  through  all 
the  years.  The  result  will  be  one  of  the  glorious  revela- 
tions of  eternity. 

With  joy  and  hope  and  affection, 

Your  brother, 

W.  F.  Warren. 

London,  May  31,  1904. 

The  last  paragraph  of  this  letter  was  truly 
prophetic.  In  response  to  his  own  request  Bishop 
Bashford  was  assigned  to  China.  An  intimate 
friend  upbraiding  him  for  his  choice  of  his  field  of 
labor  said,  "Bashford,  why  are  you  going  to  bury 
yourself  in  China?"  His  reply  was:  "Since  I  was  a 
boy  I  have  desired  to  go  as  a  missionary  to  China; 
this  is  my  opportunity."  To  another  who  said, 
"You  are  going  to  bury  yourself  in  China,"  his 
prompt  reply  was:  "Well,  I  believe  in  the  resur- 
rection." What  a  great  and  speedy  rising  to  new- 
ness of  life  and  widening  power!  His  life  came  to  its 
climax  in  his  work  in  China.  By  his  service  in  inter- 
preting to  China  the  Christian  message  and  also  in 
interpreting  China  to  herself  and  to  America 


THE  BISHOP  IN  CHINA 


THE  BISHOP  m  CHINA  113 


Bashford  became  a  world  figure.  His  career  as  a 
missionary  was  as  heroic  and  fruitful  as  any  in  the 
annals  of  the  modern  Christian  Church. 

When  a  student  in  the  university  Bashford  felt 
that  God  wanted  him  to  go  to  China.  But  the  way 
did  not  open.  However,  from  his  college  days  until 
his  election  to  the  episcopacy  he  was  a  close  student 
of  China's  history  and  people.  He  once  said  to  a 
friend:  "All  the  time  I  felt  that  some  day  God 
would  take  me  there.  Then  when  at  Los  Angeles  I 
was  elected  bishop  I  knew  that  it  was  God's  way 
to  get  me  to  China  and  I  have  always  been  thankful 
that  I  kept  up  my  preparation  and  study ;  and  was 
ready  for  the  work  when  the  opportunity  came." 

In  a  peculiar  sense  Bishop  Bashford  was  the  man 
for  the  hour  and  for  the  field.  His  whole  previous 
career  singularly  prepared  him  for  his  work  as  a 
missionary  in  China. 

First  of  all,  he  had  always  been  a  missionary  in 
spirit.  From  the  beginning  of  his  work  as  a  student- 
preacher  until  his  death  his  consuming  passion  was 
to  lift  men  up  to  God.  The  first  Sunday  after  his 
conversion  he  knelt  beside  two  prisoners  in  the 
Madison  jail  pointing  them  to  Christ  for  salva- 
tion. Whether  preaching  to  great  congregations 
in  Portland  and  in  Buffalo,  or  addressing  college 
students  in  chapel  talks  and  in  baccalaureate  ser- 
mons, there  was  always  an  appeal  to  the  Christian 
life.  Who  that  ever  heard  him  invite  men  to  con- 


114  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


fess  Christ  can  forget  the  eager  expectancy  in  his 
voice  and  manner?  Eminent  scholar,  eloquent 
preacher,  educator,  and  church  administrator, — in 
all  he  was  primarily  a  missionary  of  the  Christian 
faith. 

His  thirty  years  as  a  minister  of  the  gospel  and 
as  college  president  also  gave  him  invaluable  prep- 
aration for  the  crowning  work  of  his  life  as  a  Chris- 
tian missionary.  His  thoroughness  as  a  student  of 
human  affairs  for  a  quarter  of  a  century,  his  clear 
insight  into  the  vital  problems  of  religion  and 
ethics,  of  education  and  government,  his  sound 
judgment  in  appraising  human  values,  his  close 
contacts  with  all  sorts  and  classes  of  men  con- 
stituted a  valuable  equipment  for  a  missionary 
leader  at  the  dawn  of  a  new  era  in  China.  But 
more  important  than  all  else  was  the  apostolic 
spirit  of  burning  evangelism  which  flamed  in  all 
his  varied  labors.  Absorbing  as  were  the  separate 
tasks  which  engaged  him,  he  never  lost  his  sense  of 
perspective.  His  first,  last,  and  constant  concern 
was  to  bring  men  into  the  divine  kingdom. 

If  you  would  know  Bashford  the  missionary, 
follow  his  trail  in  China.  Preaching  to  students  in 
mission  schools  and  in  government  universities, 
traveling  more  than  thirty  thousand  miles  every 
year,  not  in  railroads  and  in  steamboats  alone,  but 
in  house  boats  or  carts,  wheelbarrows,  and  on  foot, 
often  speaking  to  the  people  in  towns  and  villages 


THE  BISHOP  IN  CHINA  115 


four  and  five  times  a  day,  sleeping  in  cold  and  dirty 
inns,  and  always  fighting  personal  disease — he 
made  full  proof  of  his  ministry  of  love  to  the 
Chinese  people. 

After  his  first  six  weeks  of  travel  in  China 
Bishop  Bashford  wrote  in  his  notebook:  "Fearful 
sense  of  depression  and  homesickness,  face  and  lips 
swollen  by  sunburn  and  mosquito  bites,  crowds 
pressing  upon  us  every  day,  and  so  close  that  the 
smell  seasons  our  food,  ears  wearied  with  the  babel 
of  jargon,  nauseated  with  noisome  smells,  eyes 
weary  with  the  sight  of  men  and  women  doing  the 
work  of  animals  and  machines,  with  the  hourly 
sight  of  coffins  and  the  continual  sight  of  graves, 
and  over  all  the  dark  pall  of  superstition  and 
hopelessness." 

But  his  invincible  faith  rises  above  the  gloom 
and  he  adds:  "But  Christ  has  the  remedy  for 
China's  ignorance  and  superstition  and  impotence 
and  sin.  I  seem  almost  never  to  have  known  be- 
fore the  meaning  of  the  word  gospel — 'good  news.'" 

Another  distinguishing  characteristic  of  Bash- 
ford  the  Missionary  was  his  large  conception  of 
the  missionary  task.  His  was  not  the  attitude  of 
either  national  or  religious  condescension.  He  be- 
lieved in  the  world-wide  dominion  of  Jesus  Christ 
and  in  the  solitary  preeminence  of  the  Christian 
faith  among  the  great  religions  of  the  world.  But 
he  did  not  seek  merely  to  make  converts  to  Chris- 


116  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


tianity  and  to  build  up  and  organize  the  church. 
His  aim  was  to  carry  out  the  threefold  program 
of  Jesus'  earthly  ministry — preaching,  teaching, 
and  healing.  He  believed  that  the  church,  the 
school,  and  the  hospital  were  the  agencies  which 
must  work  for  the  redemption  of  China.  The  task 
of  Christianizing  pagan  nations  has  been  ap- 
proached too  often  with  an  utterly  superficial 
conception  of  its  meaning.  The  Christian  Church 
has  undertaken  the  conquest  of  the  world  by 
attack  instead  of  by  siege.  A  narrow,  conven- 
tional orthodoxy  has  undertaken  to  enroll  doc- 
trinal adherents.  An  ambitious  ecclesiasticism 
has  sought  to  raise  up  cathedrals  instead  of  pagan 
temples.  Still  others  have  attempted  to  sup- 
plant the  manners  of  the  Orient  with  the  ways 
of  the  Occident.  But  Bishop  Bashford  believed 
that  the  Christian  religion  must  deliver  men  from 
the  power  of  the  hideous  sins  of  paganism,  and 
establish  a  system  of  education  that  would  make 
an  enlightened  populace,  an  honest  government, 
and  a  humane  system  of  industry.  He  had  the 
far-off  look.  He  saw  that  the  whole  life  of  the 
nation  must  be  transformed.  Consequently,  his 
missionary  policy  had  the  elements  of  true  states- 
manship. A  Chinese  student  in  the  University  of 
Tokyo,  after  hearing  Bishop  Bashford  preach 
several  times,  said,  "Other  missionaries  give  us 
Christianity.    Bishop  Bashford  gives  us  Chris- 


THE  BISHOP  IN  CHINA  117 


tianity  and  something  more."  It  was  "the  some- 
thing more"  which  makes  the  difference  between 
a  doctrinal  creed,  or  a  conventional  faith,  and  a 
living  spiritual  experience  expressing  itself  in  all 
the  great  human  relationships  of  life.  It  was  the 
very  bigness  of  the  missionary  enterprise  as  Bishop 
Bashford  conceived  it  which  gave  to  his  leader- 
ship in  the  church  its  high  distinction. 

Among  modern  missionaries  Bashford  holds 
high  rank  in  his  thorough  knowledge  of  his  field 
of  labor.  An  eminent  author  and  missionary  who 
has  spent  fifty  years  in  China  said  Bishop  Bash- 
ford brought  more  knowledge  of  China  with  him 
than  any  other  man  he  had  ever  known.  He  no 
sooner  took  up  his  work  in  China  than  he  set 
about  making  himself  familiar  with  the  total  life 
of  the  vast  country.  He  read  himself  into  the 
history  of  the  nation.  He  became  acquainted 
with  the  living  habits  of  the  people.  He  studied 
their  institutions.  He  knew  their  foods  and 
flowers,  their  customs  and  prejudices.  His  book, 
China — An  Interpretation,  is  pronounced  by  well- 
informed  Chinese  and  by  authorities  on  China  as 
one  of  the  most  discriminating  and  reliable  works 
published.  This  book  is  the  product  of  twelve 
years  of  ceaseless  study,  keen  observation,  and 
wide  reading.  He  had  read  every  important  book 
written  on  China  in  the  last  century.  He  had 
become  so  thoroughly  informed  by  his  extensive 


118         JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


travels  and  exhaustive  investigations  that  schol- 
arly Chinese  often  said  he  knew  more  about 
China  than  they  knew.  The  reader  of  Bashford's 
China — An  Interpretation  is  amazed  at  the  inti- 
mate acquaintance  with  the  complex  life  of  this 
most  mysterious  country  and  the  clear  insight 
into  the  character  of  the  people  which  it  reveals. 
A  prominent  missionary  in  China  when  asked 
what  is  the  chief  service  which  Bashford  rendered 
in  China  answered,  "Interpreting  China  to  her- 
self." There  is  no  more  mysterious  nation  on 
earth.  No  people  are  more  self-contradictory 
than  the  Chinese.  The  real  life  of  the  people 
defies  analysis  and  classification.  Hasty  generali- 
zations concerning  China  are  superlative  lies. 
Bashford's  eminent  distinction  as  a  student  of 
Chinese  affairs  was  happily  voiced  by  a  Chinese 
gentleman  who  said  to  the  writer,  "Bishop  Bash- 
ford  had  an  understanding  heart." 

And  this  brings  me  to  mention  his  most  prom- 
inent trait  as  apostle  of  Christianity  in  China — 
his  love  for  the  Chinese  people.  He  was  recog- 
nized by  all  classes  of  Chinese  as  their  friend. 
Scholars  and  students,  officials  and  the  plain  peo- 
ple alike  called  him  the  friend  of  China.  One  day 
at  the  close  of  an  address  in  New  York  City  the 
chairman  of  the  assembly  spoke  jestingly  of 
Bishop  Bashford's  devotion  to  his  adopted  land, 
saying  he  had  become  a  Chinese  and  they  were 


THE  BISHOP  IN  CHINA 


119 


looking  for  a  cue  on  him,  but  could  not  find  it. 
Instantly  a  Chinese  in  the  audience  replied:  "You 
did  not  look  in  the  right  place;  there  is  a  cue  on 
his  heart." 

This  was  a  high  tribute.  He  had  so  completely 
identified  himself  with  the  people  whom  he  was 
serving  that  they  claimed  him  as  their  own.  His 
genial  radiant  face  won  their  confidence.  He  was 
known  among  many  of  the  Chinese  as  "the  man 
with  the  shining  face."  His  fair  and  considerate 
treatment  won  their  respect.  His  courageous  de- 
nunciation of  their  vices  and  his  belief  in  their 
nobler  character  made  the  people  trust  him.  Both 
in  temperament  and  in  training  Bishop  Bashford 
was  the  providential  man  for  the  hour  in  China. 

The  year  1900  marked  a  crisis  in  the  history  of 
the  nation  and  of  Christian  missions.  The  Boxer 
uprising  was  a  wild  outburst  of  anti-foreign  feeling 
which  destroyed  millions  of  dollars  in  property  and 
the  lives  of  twenty  thousand  native  Christians  and 
many  missionaries.  The  overthrow  of  the  mon- 
archy and  the  establishment  of  the  Republic  of 
China  followed.  The  country  was  torn  by  revolu- 
tion and  threatened  with  exploitation  by  greedy 
foreign  powers.  The  lack  of  a  clearly  defined  mis- 
sionary policy  was  none  the  less  serious  than  the 
disastrous  loss  of  property.  At  the  same  time  there 
was  a  vast  skepticism  throughout  Christendom 
concerning  the  future  of  Christian  civilization  in 


120  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


China  which  was  most  depressing.  It  was  in  the 
midst  of  this  crisis  that  Bashford  began  his  mis- 
sionary career. 

His  statesmanship  was  evinced  in  his  recognition 
of  the  opportunity  and  needs  of  the  hour.  He  saw 
that  the  only  hope  for  the  nation  was  in  making  its 
civilization  Christian.  And  this  could  not  be  done 
by  making  converts  and  building  churches  and 
establishing  ecclesiastical  machinery  alone.  He 
saw  the  missionary  enterprise  in  the  large.  To  him 
it  meant  stimulating  reform,  introducing  modern 
learning,  establishing  hospitals,  transforming  the 
system  of  industry,  setting  up  a  political  govern- 
ment on  the  foundation  of  intelligence  and  freedom, 
— in  short,  energizing  the  whole  life  of  the  nation 
by  the  spirit  of  Christ. 

It  was  the  breadth  of  Bishop  Bashford's  mission- 
ary program  that  gave  to  him  in  a  unique  degree 
the  confidence  of  the  Chinese  nation.  He  was 
always  trying  to  impress  the  people  of  China  that 
he  was  there,  and  the  Christian  Church  was  there, 
not  to  Americanize  China,  but  to  give  to  China  the 
Christian  message.  At  the  same  time  he  was  giving 
to  America  such  an  interpretation  of  China  as 
America  had  never  had.  By  voice  and  pen  he  gave 
to  the  American  people  a  growing  conviction  that 
the  nation  that  helped  to  guide  China  was  giving  to 
civilization  the  greatest  possible  service.  He  saw 
clearly  what  many  are  now  seeing  only  dimly,  that 


THE  BISHOP  IN  CHINA  121 


the  future  of  Christianity  is  not  tied  up  with  India, 
nor  even  with  Japan,  as  it  is  tied  up  with  China,  and 
the  nation  that  makes  friends  with  China  and 
wisely  guides  her  in  the  solution  of  her  problems 
will  hold  the  key  to  the  civilization  of  the  Pacific 
Basin  for  a  thousand  years.  When  the  story  of  the 
statesmanship  of  Christian  missions  is  written  the 
historian  will  not  fail  to  note  that  in  the  strategic 
hour  one  church  had  the  sagacity  and  the  interest 
and  the  man  to  make  this  epochal  contribution  to 
the  life  of  a  nation. 

Bashford  made  this  keen  observation:  "Our 
danger  as  missionaries  is  that  the  Chinese  people 
will  encyst  the  gospel.  They  tend  to  build  a  close 
social  wall  around  the  missionary  and  his  Chinese 
converts.  Our  insistence  upon  conformity  in  all 
things  with  Western  types  of  faith  and  forms  of 
worship,  and  our  predisposition  to  keep  our  hands 
on  the  work  everywhere  and  the  tendency  of  the 
Chinese  toward  conformity  will  encourage  this 
almost  unconscious  effort  of  the  Chinese  to  build  a 
cyst  in  the  collective  organism  around  this  foreign 
religion  and  enclose  it  as  fully  as  if  it  were  in 
America.  Schools  and  more  traveling  and  evangel- 
istic work,  giving  more  authority  to  the  Chinese, 
constant  insistence  upon  their  responsibility  for  the 
evangelization  of  China,  and  above  all,  more  faith 
in  the  power  of  the  leaven  to  leaven  the  lump  are 
our  only  hope." 


122  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


As  a  church  administrator  Bishop  Bashford  was 
a  wise  builder.  Prior  to  1900  the  missions  of  the 
Methodist  Episcopal  Church  in  China  had  been 
under  the  general  superintendency  of  bishops  as- 
signed annually  to  visit  the  field  and  appoint  the 
missionaries  and  native  pastors.  Their  knowledge 
of  the  missionary  field  was  necessarily  limited. 
Their  visits  were  confined  to  three  or  four  months 
in  the  whole  country.  A  large  part  of  the  time  was 
required  to  travel.  They  did  not  know  the  Oriental 
mind.  They  knew  only  at  second  hand  the  matters 
upon  which  they  must  make  decision.  The  result 
was  an  inefficient  and  unsatisfactory  administra- 
tion of  the  affairs  of  the  missions. 

Furthermore,  incompetent  missionaries  and 
native  workers  were  continued  in  service  by  this 
inadequate  system  of  episcopal  supervision.  In 
Central  China  the  cause  of  Christianity  was 
brought  into  reproach  among  the  Chinese  by  un- 
wise administration  and  bitter  dissensions.  In  the 
strategic  centers,  notably  in  Foochow,  Hinghwa, 
Peking,  Tientsin,  Nanking,  and  Nanchang,  there 
was  an  exceptional  body  of  missionaries.  Among 
these  are  some  of  the  great  leaders  of  the  Church  in 
Asia.  The  history  of  New  China  cannot  be  written 
without  the  names  of  Nathan  Sites,  W.  H.  Lacy, 
H.  H.  Lowry,  George  R.  Davis,  N.  S.  Hopkins, 
J.  H.  Pyke,  Clara  M.  Cushman,  and  Frank  D. 
Gamewell.  Time  would  fail  me  if  I  tried  to  tell  of 


THE  BISHOP  IN  CHINA  123 


doctors,  teachers,  and  preachers  who  healed  dis- 
ease, taught  the  ignorant,  put  to  flight  heathen 
mobs,  preached  the  good  news — men  of  whom  the 
world  was  unworthy. 

But  apart  from  the  personnel  of  the  missionaries, 
the  missions  of  the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church  in 
China  in  1904  were  at  low  ebb.  With  utterly  in- 
adequate funds  with  which  to  rebuild  after  the 
Boxer  uprising  of  1900,  with  a  lack  of  missionary 
enthusiasm  in  the  home  church,  with  less  knowl- 
edge of  and  interest  in  China  than  any  other  mis- 
sionary field  in  the  Orient,  with  few  schools,  and  a 
poorly  trained  native  ministry,  Bishop  Bashford 
undertook  a  humanly  impossible  task.  He  saw 
clearly  that  the  missionary  enterprise  is  primarily 
a  man  problem.  He  placed  in  positions  of  re- 
sponsibility young  men  of  thorough  training  and 
consecration  who  believed  in  the  larger  missionary 
program.  In  a  letter  to  John  R.  Mott  he  describes 
the  character  of  men  needed  for  missionaries: 

Men  of  unselfish  Christian  spirit;  of  great  faith  and 
hope  and  belief  in  divine  providence;  of  large  sympathies 
and  attractive  personality,  so  that  they  shall  not  only  love 
Chinese  but  compel  Chinese  to  love  them;  of  power  of 
initiative  and  leadership ;  men  of  common  sense  who  know 
what  to  do  in  a  crisis;  of  such  mental  discipline  as  will 
enable  them  to  learn  Chinese  with  a  reasonable  degree  of 
speed  and  thoroughness  and  of  such  general  scholarship 
as  will  enable  them  to  distinguish  between  the  essentials 


124  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


and  the  nonessentials  in  Christianity  and  in  Methodism  as 
compared  with  other  Christian  faiths. 

He  first  set  about  quickening  the  spirit  of  the 
missionaries.  He  studied  thoroughly  their  prob- 
lems and  was  their  cheerful  leader  in  self-sacrifice 
and  in  ceaseless  labor.  His  devotion  and  courage  in- 
spired theirs.  His  openmindedness  and  fairness  won 
the  confidence  of  missionaries  and  Chinese  alike. 
When  matters  were  to  be  adjudicated,  his  investi- 
gations were  most  thorough.  He  heard  what  all 
parties  had  to  say.  The  Chinese  have  told  me  re- 
peatedly that  he  listened  to  them  just  as  he  listened 
to  the  missionaries.  He  commanded  the  confidence 
of  all  in  an  amazing  degree  because  he  thoroughly 
mastered  the  facts  in  every  situation.  When  he 
took  up  his  work  in  China,  it  was  not  for  a  few 
months  or  years,  but  for  the  rest  of  his  life.  He 
identified  his  life  with  the  country;  he  carried  its 
awful  burdens  upon  his  heart.  No  Hebrew  prophet 
was  more  truly  a  messenger  of  God  to  the  nation 
than  was  Bashford  for  fifteen  years  to  China.  He 
believed  in  the  future  of  the  nation  in  spite  of  its 
political  chaos.  He  believed  in  the  coming  king- 
dom of  God  in  China  in  spite  of  the  degrada- 
tion of  millions  of  her  people.  His  vision  and 
hope  inspired  faith  and  courage  in  all  the  mission 
workers. 

At  the  end  of  his  first  quadrennium  in  China 


THE  BISHOP  IN  CHINA 


125 


Doctor  James  M.  Buckley  said  to  Bishop  Bash- 
ford: 

"You  have  given  now  four  years  to  China  and 
that  is  enough;  the  church  at  home  has  a  right  to 
expect  the  next  four  years  of  your  service."  The 
Bishop  replied  that  he  had  considered  the  matter 
carefully,  and  had  decided  to  go  back  to  China 
because  of  its  critical  situation  and  its  future  impor- 
tance in  the  world.  Doctor  Buckley  finally  yielded 
by  saying  that  he  had  decided  not  to  oppose  in  the 
General  Conference  the  Bishop's  appointment  to 
China  for  another  quadrennium,  but  it  was  with 
the  understanding  that  he  must  give  the  rest  of 
his  life  to  the  United  States. 

"Very  well,"  said  the  Bishop,  "I  am  glad  you 
will  not  oppose  my  return  to  China  for  the  next 
four  years.  As  for  the  following  General  Con- 
ference you  will  be  dead  and  I  shall  go  back  to 
China  just  the  same." 

In  1908,  on  the  eve  of  Bishop  Bashford's  return 
to  begin  the  second  quadrennium  of  his  work  in 
China,  Bishop  Earl  Cranston  wrote  this  heartening 
message : 

Soon  you  will  be  leaving  us  for  your  imperial  diocese. 
The  church  loves  you  and  trusts  you.  Your  colleagues 
will  follow  you  with  prayer  and  great  desire  for  your 
health  and  success.  We  believe  in  you  utterly  and  love 
you  as  a  brother.  We  glory  in  your  apostolic  faith  and 
courage.    We  also  admire  the  brave  and  devoted  woman 


126  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


who  gives  herself  and  her  part  in  you  to  the  hazards  of 
your  great  campaign.  May  God  have  you  both  in  his 
mighty  power,  and  grant  you  the  joy  of  victory. 

Affectionately  yours, 

Earl  Cranston. 

Bishop  Bashford  approached  the  problems  of 
church  administration,  not  from  the  point  of  view 
of  the  mere  ecclesiastic,  but  as  an  educator  and 
statesman.  He  took  the  long  view,  caring  more  for 
laying  permanent  foundations  than  for  immediate 
results  to  be  tabulated.  Bashford  rendered  no  more 
important  service  to  the  Methodist  Episcopal 
Church  in  China  than  in  lifting  it  out  of  a  narrow 
denominationalism.  Ardent  Methodist  though  he 
was,  he  had  a  broad  catholic  spirit  which  was  ever 
trying  to  bring  all  the  Christian  forces  into  close 
and  effective  cooperation.  He  was  never  accused  of 
denominational  intolerance.  Again  and  again  he 
insisted  that  a  local  denominational  interest  must 
be  sacrificed  for  the  sake  of  the  larger  success  of 
the  Kingdom.  It  was  often  said  by  representatives 
of  other  Christian  bodies  that  Bishop  Bashford  be- 
longed, not  to  the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church, 
but  to  the  entire  Christian  Church. 

The  wise  leadership  of  Bishop  Bashford  is 
evidenced  in  his  strong  advocacy  of  the  union  of  all 
Christian  forces.  The  scandal  of  the  church  in  all 
lands  has  been  its  disastrous  divisions.  He  saw  that 
the  only  hope  of  the  redemption  of  China's  millions 


THE  BISHOP  IN  CHINA  127 


was  in  all  the  Christian  forces  making  a  united 
impact  upon  the  task.  He  strongly  opposed  over- 
lapping in  effort.  He  urged  the  establishment  in 
strategic  centers  of  union  colleges  and  hospitals  in 
order  that  they  might  be  adequately  supported 
and  the  standard  of  their  work  raised. 

In  the  early  part  of  1911  he  wrote  in  his  note- 
book concerning  organizing  a  Christian  union 
university  in  Peking  to  take  the  place  of  the  denom- 
inational institutions  then  in  operation: 

"We  have  the  witness  of  history  and  the  testi- 
mony of  experience  as  to  the  wastefulness  and  the 
evils  of  the  denominational  system  in  our  Christian 
lands.  After  prayer  and  thought  I  decided  to  ven- 
ture out  on  faith.  Hence  to-day,  March  25th,  we 
held  a  meeting  with  representatives  of  the  Anglican 
Mission,  the  American  Board,  the  Presbyterian, 
and  the  London  Missions;  and  the  resolution 
which  I  presented  in  favor  of  a  Christian  union 
university  was  unanimously  adopted.  We  have 
either  made  or  marred  history  to-day.  I  believe 
under  God  we  have  helped  to  make  it." 

Largely  through  his  influence  all  the  Protestant 
Christian  bodies  united  their  separate  colleges  in 
Peking,  Nanking,  Foochow,  and  Chengtu.  The 
consolidation  of  the  educational  work  of  these 
different  denominations  was  strongly  opposed  by 
some  influential  men.  The  differences  of  judgment 
between  them  and  Bishop  Bashford  were  radical 


128  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


but  honest.  The  opponents  of  union  believed  that 
the  sacrifice  of  denominational  interests  was  too 
great,  and  the  difficulties  of  joint  administration 
too  grave  to  warrant  so  radical  a  change  in  policy. 
Bashford  urged  the  necessity  of  two  things:  first, 
of  increasing  facilities  of  the  Christian  colleges; 
arid  second,  of  raising  the  standard  of  their  work. 
Neither  could  be  accomplished  so  long  as  the 
different  religious  bodies  were  maintaining  com- 
peting institutions.  Besides,  he  urged  that  with 
the  standards  of  the  government  schools  steadily 
advancing,  the  Christian  schools  must  give  oppor- 
tunities in  no  way  inferior  to  the  best  offered  by  the 
government  schools.  The  negotiations  to  effect 
this  union  of  these  educational  institutions  ex- 
tended over  a  period  of  several  years.  It  was  at 
last  consummated  with  no  breach  of  personal  rela- 
tions between  men  who  differed  honestly  in  judg- 
ment. It  is  already  clearly  apparent  that  this 
program  is  full  of  promise  for  the  extension  of 
Christian  education  in  China.  It  is  interesting  to 
note  that  the  educational  policy  outlined  by  the 
Interdenominational  Educational  Commission 
which  met  in  Shanghai  in  the  fall  of  1921  is  only 
the  development  of  the  program  outlined  by 
Bishop  Bashford  a  decade  before. 

This  Commission  comprised  among  other  emi- 
nent educators  and  prominent  Churchmen,  Doctor 
Ernest  DeWitt  Burton,  President  Mary  E.  Wool- 


THE  BISHOP  IN  CHINA  129 


ley,  Professor  William  Fletcher  Russell,  Doctor 
Frank  W.  Padelford,  Bishop  F.  J.  McConnell, 
President  John  Leighton  Stuart,  and  Doctor  Frank 
D.  Gamewell.  After  a  careful  investigation  of  the 
educational  institutions  of  China,  both  govern- 
ment and  Christian  schools,  covering  a  period  of 
several  months,  their  findings  attest  the  statesman- 
ship of  Bishop  Bashford  in  urging  the  union  of 
Christian  forces  for  the  development  of  the  educa- 
tional system  of  China.  The  task  of  uniting  the 
Protestant  denominations  of  China  in  educational 
work  was  an  exceedingly  difficult  and  delicate  one. 
The  doctrinal  conservatism  of  some  of  the  churches, 
the  rigid  ecclesiastical  policy  of  others,  and  the 
spirit  of  rivalry,  always  to  be  reckoned  with,  made 
the  accomplishment  of  actual  union  seem  quite 
hopeless.  And  yet  Bashford  showed  such  breadth 
of  view,  such  tolerance  of  the  opinions  of  others, 
such  readiness  to  yield  in  nonessentials  and  withal 
such  evident  unselfishness  and  devotion  to  the  one 
great  task  of  building  up  the  church  of  Christ  that 
the  union  was  achieved. 

There  is  a  still  more  important  chapter  in  the 
story  of  Bishop  Bashford's  educational  leadership 
in  China.  It  has  to  do  with  his  promotion  of  the 
work  of  the  China  Medical  Board.  This  board  is 
one  of  the  great  benefactions  of  Mr.  John  D. 
Rockefeller.  In  1914,  under  the  direction  of  the 
Rockefeller  Foundation,  a  commission  consisting  of 


130  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


Doctor  Harry  Pratt  Judson,  Chairman,  Doctor 
Francis  W.  Peabody,  and  Mr.  Roger  S.  Greene 
was  sent  to  China  to  investigate  the  conditions  of 
medical  education  and  to  recommend  measures  for 
promoting  medical  research  and  for  the  more 
effective  treatment  of  the  diseases  of  the  Orient. 

In  his  first  interview  with  the  members  of  the 
commission,  Bishop  Bashford  presented  for  their 
consideration  two  programs:  First,  the  establish- 
ment by  the  China  Medical  Board  of  two  or  more 
standard  colleges  or  universities  for  training  men 
as  teachers  and  physicians  in  the  Medical  College, 
or,  second,  the  cooperation  of  the  board  with  the 
mission  schools  in  order  to  supply  well-trained  men 
as  medical  students.  The  China  Medical  Board 
sent  a  second  commission  to  China  consisting  of 
Doctor  Wallace  Buttrick  as  chairman,  Doctor 
William  H.  Welch  of  the  Johns  Hopkins  Medical 
School,  Doctor  Simon  Flexner  of  the  Rockefeller 
Institute  for  Medical  Research,  and  Doctor 
Frederick  L.  Gates  of  the  Rockefeller  Institute  for 
Medical  Research.  Bishop  Bashford  laid  before  the 
commission  the  report  of  the  missions  during  the 
past  four  years.  He  outlined  to  them  his  program 
for  raising  a  million  dollars  in  gold  for  China  during 
the  next  four  years.  He  began  urging  strongly  both 
by  voice  and  pen  heartiest  cooperation  with  the 
China  Medical  Board  in  this  great  educational 
enterprise.  When  the  plans  of  the  China  Medical 


THE  BISHOP  IN  CHINA  131 


Board  were  first  proposed  they  were  viewed  by 
some  missionaries  with  alarm.  They  feared  inter- 
ference with  the  educational  and  medical  work  of 
the  missions.  Bashford  urged  the  cooperation  of 
the  missionaries  on  the  ground  that  it  was  im- 
possible for  them  to  provide  equipment  and 
teachers  for  thorough  scientific  and  professional 
courses,  and  that  such  educational  work  as  was 
offered  by  the  missions  must  be  as  good  as  the  best. 
On  the  other  hand,  he  counseled  the  China  Medical 
Board  to  organize  its  work  on  such  a  basis  as  would 
not  compete  with  or  duplicate  the  work  done  in  the 
mission  schools.  His  counsels  prevailed  with  both 
bodies.  This  was  a  notable  achievement  in  public 
leadership. 

In  December,  1915,  Bishop  Bashford  sailed  from 
Shanghai  to  America  on  the  same  ship  with  the 
members  of  this  commission.  In  the  course  of  the 
voyage  he  held  several  interviews  with  Doctor 
Flexner  and  Doctor  Buttrick  and  made  upon  their 
minds  a  strong  impression.  Doctor  Flexner  ex- 
pressed to  Bishop  Bashford  the  judgment  that  the 
work  of  the  missions  would  stand  the  closest 
scientific  inspection  and  that  the  cooperation  of  the 
China  Medical  Board  and  the  missions  was  neces- 
sary to  the  highest  usefulness  of  both  in  China. 
Bashford  promised  the  board  the  cooperation  of 
the  missions.  On  shipboard  he  writes  in  his 
journal:  "I  will  thank  God  in  advance  for  what  he 


132  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


is  doing  and  for  what  he  is  going  to  do  through 
these  men." 

Following  the  report  of  the  commission,  the 
China  Medical  Board  authorized  the  expenditure 
of  seven  million  dollars  for  medical  work  in  China. 
In  November,  1920,  the  Peking  Union  Medical 
College  was  dedicated  with  appropriate  ceremonies. 
With  a  magnificent  modern  plant,  splendidly 
equipped  and  manned  by  experts  from  England, 
America,  China,  and  other  countries,  medical 
training  is  available  in  Peking  second  to  none  else- 
where in  the  world. 

One  of  the  great  problems  in  Christianizing  the 
pagan  nations  is  correlating  the  Christian  forces. 
In  China  there  are  twenty  Protestant  denomina- 
tions doing  mission  work  among  four  hundred 
million  people.  Bashford  showed  true  statesman- 
ship in  his  strong  support  of  Christian  union.  In  an 
article  on  "Christian  Literature  in  China"  pub- 
lished in  1905,  Bishop  Bashford  wrote:  "It  is 
possible  that  organic  union  is  not  the  goal  toward 
which  Christians  ought  to  aim.  But  the  leaders  of 
Protestant  Christianity  in  China  and  the  followers 
of  Jesus  Christ  in  this  empire  will  yet  furnish  an 
example  of  practical  cooperation,  and  possibly  of 
federated  fellowship  which  may  make  the  Orient 
the  leader  of  the  Occident  in  realizing  Christ's 
prayer  for  the  unity  of  believers." 

He  was  never  a  narrow  denominationalist.  He 


THE  BISHOP  IN  CHINA  133 


never  promoted  the  work  of  the  Methodist  Church 
at  the  expense  of  the  larger  interests  of  the  king- 
dom of  Christ.  He  recognized  the  individuality  of 
each  Christian  body  and  at  the  same  time  pro- 
moted cooperation  with  all  denominations  in  the 
broadest-minded  and  most  fraternal  spirit.  He  be- 
lieved that  the  Christian  forces  of  China  must  pre- 
sent an  undivided  front.  He  stood  for  the  develop- 
ment in  China  of  a  national  rather  than  a  denom- 
inational Christian  consciousness.  At  the  same 
time  he  strongly  opposed  the  organization  of  a 
national  church.  He  advocated  a  world-wide 
Christian  Church  rather  than  national  churches. 

In  1907  an  Interdenominational  Conference  was 
held  in  Shanghai  at  which  there  was  strong  senti- 
ment in  favor  of  the  establishment  of  an  independ- 
ent church  for  the  Chinese.  Later  a  conference 
was  held  in  Canton  at  which  John  R.  Mott  pre- 
sided, when  the  sentiment  concerning  a  national 
independent  church  was  more  divided.  The  Con- 
gregationalists  favored  independence,  while  the 
Baptists  and  Episcopalians  stood  for  maintaining 
connection  with  the  home  churches.  Many  of  the 
strong  Chinese  favored  an  independent  church  for 
China.  Bashford  opposed  both  sides,  and  pleaded 
for  a  world-wide  church  with  such  organization  as 
would  give  to  the  various  denominations  in  China 
practical  autonomy  in  administering  their  church 
affairs.    He  contended  that  the  establishment  of 


134  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


national  churches  would  militate  against  the  world- 
wide extension  of  Christianity,  against  the  spiritual 
vigor  of  the  mission  churches  and  against  a  heroic 
type  of  piety  in  the  home  churches.  He  contended 
that  Christian  union  does  not  contemplate  external 
uniformity  of  organization,  but  rather  the  spiritual 
union  of  all  men  everywhere  in  the  spirit  of  Christ 
for  the  service  of  humanity.  In  the  Canton  Con- 
ference he  uttered  these  noble  words:  "Whatever 
may  be  the  extent  of  the  union  toward  which  the 
church  is  to  aim,  this  union  will  be  achieved  more 
fully  and  more  speedily,  if  each  denomination 
belts  the  globe  with  its  membership,  its  sym- 
pathies, and  its  prayers  than  if  the  various  denom- 
inations are  first  gathered  into  national  units.  The 
New  Testament  puts  the  cross  above  the  flag  and 
not  the  flag  above  the  cross."  Bashford's  view 
prevailed. 

The  catholicity  of  his  mind  finds  bold  expres- 
sion: "All  federation  and  cooperation  in  China 
must  start  on  the  equality  before  Christ  of  all  the 
churches.  In  Christ  Jesus  there  can  be  no  Meth- 
odist or  Baptist,  Roman  Catholic  or  Protestant 
Episcopal,  Presbyterian  or  Friend,  but  we  are  all 
new  men  in  Christ.  The  churches  must  take  the 
best  from  each  other.  I  hold  that  we  must  adopt 
from  the  Unitarian  greater  intellectual  hospitality, 
from  the  Friend  greater  spirituality  as  the  result 
of  cultivating  the  presence  of  God,  from  the  Meth- 


THE  BISHOP  IN  CHINA  135 


odists  their  practical  genius  and  their  ability  to  get 
things  done." 

Bashford  was  more  than  a  missionary  and  church 
administrator.  He  was  a  Christian  statesman.  For 
many  years  he  had  been  a  student  of  international 
problems.  He  was  particularly  interested  in  the 
political  questions  of  the  Far  East.  He  had  un- 
usual sagacity  in  judging  the  trend  of  human 
affairs.  Many  of  his  utterances  are  almost  un- 
canny in  their  reliable  forecast  of  national  events. 
He  reminds  one  of  the  old  Hebrew  prophets  both  in 
the  certainty  and  in  the  moral  conviction  with 
which  he  speaks.  But  he  never  made  haphazard 
guesses.  He  was  a  master  in  gathering  information 
from  all  sources.  He  had  keen  discernment  in  the 
appraisal  of  human  values. 

No  foreigner  has  had  greater  influence  in  the 
public  affairs  of  China  in  the  last  fifteen  years  than 
had  Bishop  Bashford.  He  was  recognized  by  the 
Chinese  as  a  scholar  and  as  a  disinterested  friend. 
His  counsel  was  frequently  sought,  therefore,  by 
Chinese  officials.  He  was  never  a  meddler  in 
political  matters.  He  was  always  judicious  in 
keeping  himself  above  suspicion  as  a  political 
partisan.  These  words  reveal  his  attitude:  "My 
interest  in  governments,  in  public  men,  and  in 
national  movements,  is  not  in  these  per  se,  but  it  is 
in  so  observing  them  that  I  can  learn  better  how  to 
bring  in  power  the  kingdom  of  God  among  these 


136         JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


same  governments  and  these  same  people  and  to 
influence  these  same  movements." 

In  1905  he  attended  a  meeting  of  prominent 
Chinese  in  Foochow  for  the  organization  of  the 
Anti-Opium  Association.  The  officers  of  this  or- 
ganization told  me  with  much  enthusiasm  of 
Bishop  Bashford's  help  in  promoting  this  reform. 

Shortly  after  his  election  as  Bishop  in  1904  he 
called  upon  President  Roosevelt  and  Secretary  Hay 
and  urged  their  efforts  in  behalf  of  a  just  and 
humane  enforcement  of  the  Chinese  Exclusion  Act. 
As  early  as  1905  Bashford  wrote  concerning  the 
situation  in  the  Far  East:  "The  danger  which  now 
confronts  Japan  is  national  pride  and  worldliness. 
If  she  follows  in  the  footsteps  of  the  Master  and 
helps  lift  up  and  transform  Korea;  if  she  recognizes 
the  need  of  her  own  people  for  Christian  purity, 
Japan  will  become  the  Great  Britain  of  the  Orient 
and  lead  the  civilization  of  the  Pacific  Basin  in  the 
twentieth  century  as  England  led  that  of  the 
Atlantic  Basin  in  the  nineteenth  century.  If  on  the 
other  hand  Japan  aims  at  mere  earthly  glory  and 
selfish  and  sensual  gratification,  her  triumphs,  how- 
ever brilliant,  will  prove  as  short-lived  as  those  of 
Genghis  Khan  and  of  Alexander.  So  if  China 
masters  a  material  civilization  before  she  accepts 
Christ  and  the  gospel  she  will  carry  the  utilitarian- 
ism of  Confucius  into  materialism  and  worldliness." 

In  1909  Bishop  Bashford  wrote:    "The  mis- 


THE  BISHOP  IN  CHINA  137 


sionary  can  no  more  become  the  champion  of  Japan 
than  Isaiah  was  the  champion  of  Babylon.  Prob- 
ably the  prophet  must  announce  both  the  past 
punishment  of  Korea  and  the  future  punishment  of 
Japan  unless  both  alike  repent.  If  Japan  only  had 
the  prophetic  vision  to  see  it,  and  China  and  Russia 
and  Korea  and  America  and  England  and  Ger- 
many, all  our  interests  are  identical.  I  am  in  favor 
of  our  government  building  a  large  navy  so  as  to 
effectively  take  her  part  as  a  policeman  among  the 
nations,  .  .  .  but  with  or  without  the  large  navy, 
acting  among  the  nations  according  to  the  golden 
rule." 

Bashford's  attitude  toward  the  Far  Eastern 
Question  is  stated  clearly  in  a  letter  which  he  wrote 
to  Melville  E.  Stone  of  the  Associated  Press  in 
1909:  "As  I  see  the  problem  the  Japanese  must 
engage  in  an  industrial  and  commercial  struggle 
with  America,  Europe,  and  China  for  commercial 
supremacy  in  the  Far  East.  This  is  wholly  incon- 
sistent with  the  vast  war  expenditures  which  have 
already  badly  handicapped  Japan  for  the  struggle. 
A  peaceful  policy  on  the  Asiatic  continent  and 
justice  and  benevolence  in  the  treatment  of  the 
Koreans  is  infinitely  better  for  Japan  than  a  warlike 
policy.  On  the  other  hand,  the  Chinese  government 
should  not  lift  a  finger  in  opposition  to  such  a 
policy  on  the  part  of  Japan  in  Korea.  In  a  word,  if 
Japan  can  now  hold  Korea  through  her  real  service 


138         JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


to  the  people,  she  should  be  allowed  to  do  so.  But 
a  peaceful  policy  will  not  be  possible  in  the  Far 
East  unless  Japan  surrenders  all  claims  to  Man- 
churia." 

Bashford's  influence  in  the  early  days  of  the 
Chinese  Republic  was  very  great.  His  acquaintance 
with  conditions  and  public  sentiment  throughout 
the  whole  country  was  reliable.  Prominent  Chinese 
trusted  information  which  he  gave  them  even  more 
than  they  trusted  information  from  Chinese 
sources.  He  knew  Sun  Yat  Sen,  Admiral  Tsai,  and 
the  counselors  of  Yuan  Shi  Kai,  and  many  others 
who  founded  the  Republic.  He  believed  that  it  was 
not  possible  to  establish  immediately  a  stable 
democratic  government  in  China,  but  at  the  same 
time,  if  not  hindered  by  foreign  interference,  in  due 
time  a  representative  republic  would  be  established 
with  a  central  government  handling  all  interna- 
tional questions  and  national  measures,  and  giving 
to  the  eighteen  provinces  a  larger  degree  of 
autonomy  in  all  matters  of  local  government. 
Bishop  Bashford's  keen  discriminating  judgment 
of  men  and  affairs  is  indicated  in  his  early  estimate 
of  Sun  Yat  Sen  and  Yuan  Shi  Kai.  Sun  Yat  Sen's 
subsequent  career  as  a  public  leader  has  confirmed 
Bashford's  characterization: 

"Sun  Yat  Sen  is  a  dreamer  who  imagined  that 
by  a  move  of  his  hand  he  had  removed  the  Manchu 
dynasty  and  that  another  wave  of  his  hand  would 


THE  BISHOP  IX  CHINA  139 


remove  Yuan  Shi  Kai.  While  I  do  not  regard  him 
as  a  malicious  conspirator,  nevertheless  some 
blunders  in  action  are  equivalent  to  crimes,  and  the 
present  rebellion  brought  on  by  Hwang  Hsing 
and  others,  but  which  would  not  have  been  pos- 
sible without  Sun  Yat  Sen's  consent,  is  such  a 
blunder." 

He  characterized  Yuan  Shi  Kai  as  "a  man  of 
action,  courage,  and  frankness  in  striking  contrast 
to  the  great  scholar  Chang  Chih  Tung.  He  is 
embodied  China.  He  is  a  Chinese,  not  a  Manchu. 
Yuan  is  embodied  China  in  the  sense  that  he  has 
the  best  qualities  of  the  Chinese  in  larger  measure 
than  any  of  his  contemporaries  in  public  life.  He 
has  the  Chinese  health  and  strength  intensified. 
Imagine  a  man  of  short  stature,  slightly  burly,  with 
a  bull  neck,  the  complexion  of  a  farmer,  without 
high  scholastic  training,  but  by  no  means  ignorant, 
of  indomitable  will  and  untiring  industry  and  with 
the  business  instincts  of  the  Chinese  raised  to  the 
Nth  power,  and  you  have  a  fair  impression  of  this 
Honanen  soldier  and  administrator." 

In  an  interview  with  President  Taft  in  April, 
1912,  he  urged  the  President  to  recognize  the 
Chinese  Republic,  which  he  promised  to  do.  Mr. 
Taft  put  his  arm  around  Bishop  Bashford  as  he  was 
leaving  the  'White  House  and  expressed  great 
appreciation  of  his  work.  Then  he  said  with  a  half 
sigh:  "You  and  I  will  have  to  wait  until  the  next 


140  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


world  for  our  reward."  After  Bishop  Bashford 
presented  his  report  on  China  to  the  General  Con- 
ference of  the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church  in 
Minneapolis  in  May,  1912,  the  Conference  by- 
unanimous  vote  and  with  great  enthusiasm  adopted 
a  memorial  to  the  United  States  government  to 
recognize  the  Republic  of  China. 

While  Bashford  was  more  optimistic  concerning 
the  Republic  than  the  conditions  of  the  country 
would  warrant,  in  the  main  his  judgment  of  the 
situation  has  been  confirmed  by  the  events  of  the 
past  ten  years. 

A  man  of  visions  though  he  was,  he  was  never  an 
enthusiast.  In  the  early  days  of  the  Republic  it 
was  proposed  to  adopt  Christianity  as  the  state 
religion  of  China.  This  action  was  strongly  op- 
posed by  Bishop  Bashford  on  the  ground  that  it 
would  awaken  the  antagonism  of  the  other  religions 
of  China,  and  further  on  the  ground  that  the  formal 
recognition  of  Christianity  by  the  state  would  have 
no  moral  or  social  significance  to  the  people.  Later 
it  was  proposed  to  adopt  Sunday  as  a  day  of  rest 
and  a  legal  holiday.  Bashford  advised  against  this 
action  because  the  country  as  a*  whole  was  not  yet 
ready  for  a  religious  observance  of  Sunday  and  the 
mere  formal  recognition  of  the  day  would  avail 
little. 

The  story  of  Bashford's  service  as  a  Christian 
statesman  contains  one  chapter  of  dramatic  inter- 


THE  BISHOP  IN  CHINA  141 


est.  It  has  to  do  with  his  efforts  in  behalf  of  the 
territorial  integrity  of  China  at  the  time  of  the  now 
famous  "Twenty-one  Demands"  made  on  China 
by  Japan. 

On  January  18, 1915,  Doctor  Hioki,  the  Japanese 
Minister,  called  upon  Yuan  Shi-Kai  and  placed  in 
his  hands  a  copy  of  the  Twenty-one  Demands.  At 
the  same  time  Doctor  Hioki  threatened  dire  conse- 
quences if  he  divulged  these  demands  to  any  one, 
and  also  demanded  their  immediate  acceptance  by 
China.  No  sooner  were  the  demands  upon  China 
reported  than  Count  Okuma  began  trying  to 
allay  popular  feeling  by  interpreting  the  document 
not  as  demands  but  only  as  suggestions  for  future 
determination.  When  the  report  of  Japan's 
threatened  aggressions  upon  China  was  first  re- 
ceived in  Washington,  the  Japanese  ambassador  to 
Washington  denied  that  these  demands  had  been 
made  by  his  government.  The  report  that  the  de- 
mands had  been  made  upon  China  was  sent  by  the 
British  correspondents  to  the  London  press,  and 
was  discredited  and  withheld  from  publication  for 
two  weeks  or  more.  Bashford  meanwhile  had 
secured,  but  not  from  the  Chinese,  a  photographic 
copy  of  the  original  document.  At  this  juncture 
Bishop  Bashford  addressed  a  letter  to  Secretary  of 
State  William  J.  Bryan,  which  is  a  masterly  state- 
ment of  the  issues  involved.  I  quote  the  letter  to 
Mr.  Bryan  at  length: 


142         JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


Peking,  China, 
March  12,  1915. 

Hon.  William  Jennings  Bryan, 
Secretary  of  State, 
Washington,  D.  C. 

Dear  Mr.  Bryan: 

I  have  in  hand  a  copy  of  the  twenty-one  demands  made 
on  January  18,  1915,  by  the  Japanese  minister  to  China 
upon  Yuan  Shi-Kai.  I  obtained  them  confidentially  from 
the  very  highest  sources — not  from  the  Chinese — and 
under  a  pledge  not  to  transmit  them  to  anyone,  though 
certainly  they  are  in  your  hands  and  I  am  sure  the  sub- 
stance of  them  has  now  been  published  in  America.  These 
demands  transfer  the  control  of  the  commercial  life  of 
China  and  in  substance  the  sovereignty  of  the  nation  to 
Japan,  while  maintaining  in  form  the  independence  and 
integrity  of  the  Chinese  nation.  This  will  be  seen  from  the 
following  facts : 

First,  the  Japanese  government  is  to  own  'and  fully 
control  the  new  railway  lines  in  the  following  sections : 

a.  Southern  Manchuria  and  Inner  Mongolia. 

b.  Shantung,  with  any  concessions  which  Germany  may 
have  secured  from  China,  either  open  or  secret,  giv- 
ing the  right  for  the  extension  of  railways  into 
Shansi  and  Shensi. 

c.  Hankow  and  all  the  regions  surrounding  it. 

d.  Fukien,  extending  as  far  south  as  Swatow  in  the 
Kwantung  province,  and  as  far  west  as  Manchang 
in  the  Kiangsi  province. 

The  territory  in  which  the  Japanese  government  pro- 
poses to  own  and  operate  the  railways  extends  from 
Mukden  on  the  north,  to  Swatow  on  the  south.  West- 


THE  BISHOP  IN  CHINA  143 


ward,  the  territory  extends  on  the  north  from  the  eastern 
boundaries  of  Manchuria  to  the  western  borders  of  Inner 
Mongolia,  a  distance  of  a  thousand  miles;  in  the  central 
part  of  the  nation  from  Shanghai  to  Hankow,  a  distance 
of  six  hundred  miles;  and  from  Hankow  the  line  runs 
south  and  slightly  east  reaching  the  coast  at  Swatow  in 
the  Kwantung  province,  the  demands  giving  the  Japanese 
government  the  right  to  construct  railways  from  Nan- 
chang  to  Foochow  and  from  Nanchang  to  Swatow.  The 
time  of  control  of  this  railway  transportation  in  China 
by  the  Japanese  government  is  specified  as  ninety-nine 
years  in  the  case  of  some  of  the  railways,  while  no  period 
whatever  is  specified  for  the  expiration  of  this  control  in 
the  case  of  other  railways. 

Again,  in  addition  to  the  actual  ownership  and  control 
of  these  new  arteries  of  trade,  not  by  Japanese  individuals 
but  by  the  Japanese  government,  the  demands  specify 
that  China  must  not  grant  any  concession  to  any  other 
government  or  to  the  subjects  of  any  other  government  to 
build  or  run  any  railway,  or  to  own  or  operate  any  mines 
within  this  area,  and  must  not  secure  any  loan  from  any 
other  government  or  the  subjects  of  any  other  govern- 
ment without  the  consent  of  the  Japanese  government. 
Therefore,  any  attempt  of  the  Chinese  government  to 
escape  being  commercially  throttled  by  Japan  through 
extension  of  like  privileges  to  other  foreign  individuals 
or  governments  is  made  impossible.  It  is  true  that  the 
Japanese  government  does  not  demand  any  control  of  the 
three  or  four  railways  within  this  area  now  built  and 
operated  under  foreign  companies,  for  this  would  at  once 
bring  her  into  conflict  with  foreign  governments.  But 
the  control  of  the  railway  and  mining  concessions,  and 
of  all  power  to  borrow  money  for  internal  improvements 


144  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


on  all  territory  surrounding  those  existing  railways,  gives 
Japan  the  power  either  to  compel  these  roads  to  enter 
into  the  trust  with  herself  for  the  exploitation  of  China's 
commerce  or  else  to  throttle  them.  It  is  plain  also  that 
western  China  cannot  secure  any  world  market  except 
through  eastern  China,  so  that  the  Japanese  government 
thus  controls  the  commercial  life  of  the  nation ;  and  you 
are  well  aware  that  commercial  control  in  these  days 
carries  with  it  the  practical  control  of  the  life  of  the  peo- 
ple. A  corporation  enjoying  this  great  monopoly  would 
practically  control  the  nation,  and  in  this  case  the  con- 
trol is  not  that  of  a  corporation  but  of  a  foreign  govern- 
ment, and  carries  with  it  the  right  to  police  these  railway 
lines,  stations,  etc.,  with  the  soldiers  of  that  government 
— a  right  which  Japan  has  exercised  in  southern  Man- 
churia ever  since  she  assumed  control  of  that  railway. 

Second,  the  area  embraced  in  the  first  specification, 
viz.,  southern  Manchuria  and  Inner  Mongolia,  is  thrown 
open  to  Japanese  settlement.  The  demands  specify  that 
Japanese  subjects  shall  be  free  to  travel,  engage  in  busi- 
ness and  manufactures  of  any  kind  whatsoever,  to  erect 
buildings  for  trade,  manufacture,  farming,  to  lease  or 
own  lands,  to  open  mines,  and  to  reside  in  these  two 
regions — a  territory  of  about  160,000  square  miles  in 
area,  capable  of  an  increase  in  population  of  some  twenty- 
five  to  fifty  million  people.  But  there  is  not  a  line  in  the 
demands  in  regard  to  the  abandonment  of  extraterri- 
toriality upon  the  part  of  these  Japanese  residents.  No 
foreigner  in  China  is  subject  to  Chinese  law.  Any  for- 
eigner committing  a  crime  must  be  arrested  and  tried  by 
officials  and  under  the  law  of  his  own  country.  Hence, 
this  provision  enables  Japanese  residents  to  carry  Japan- 
ese law  and  Japanese  administration  of  the  law  to  every 


THE  BISHOP  IN  CHINA  145 


part  of  Manchuria  and  Inner  Mongolia,  thus  completely 
overthrowing  Chinese  sovereignty  in  this  region. 

Third,  the  Japanese  government,  ostensibly  for  the  pur- 
pose of  effectively  protecting  the  territorial  integrity  and 
independence  of  China,  demands  that  the  Chinese  govern- 
ment shall  employ  "influential"  Japanese  advisers  in 
financial,  political,  and  military  affairs.  Thus  not  simply 
the  financial  control  of  China,  but  all  political  and  mili- 
tary affairs  are  to  be  put  under  Japanese  advisers.  In 
addition  to  the  Chinese  government  being  compelled  to 
accept  Japanese  military  advisers,  the  demands  specify 
that  China  shall  purchase  "fifty  per  cent  or  more"  of  all 
her  munitions  of  war  from  Japan,  or  else  that  Japan  shall 
establish  in  China  a  jointly  worked  arsenal  in  which 
Japanese  experts  shall  be  employed,  and  Japanese  ma- 
terial used  in  supplying  munitions  of  war  for  China.  You 
see  how  impossible  it  will  be  under  these  conditions  for 
the  Chinese  government  to  throw  off  the  military  control 
of  Japan. 

Finally,  the  demands  mention  that  frequent  conflicts 
have  arisen  between  Japanese  subjects  and  policemen.  On 
account  of  these  difficulties  the  police  departments  of 
"important  places"  shall  be  jointly  administered  by  Jap- 
anese and  Chinese;  or  else  the  Chinese  police  departments 
of  these  "important  places"  shall  employ  "numerous 
Japanese"  for  the  purpose  of  organizing  and  improving 
the  Chinese  police  service:  the  ostensible  object  of  this 
clause  being  to  prevent  conflicts  between  Chinese  and  Jap- 
anese citizens.  The  only  limit  to  Japanese  police  coopera- 
tion being  "important  places,"  every  place  in  China  which 
becomes  important  by  virtue  of  these  possible  conflicts 
of  authority  may  thus  be  subjected  to  the  joint  control 
of  Chinese  and  Japanese  police  officials,  while  the  an- 


146  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


thority  to  organize  and  improve  the  service  clearly  puts 
the  Japanese  in  control  of  the  police  service. 

I  am  sure  that  you  will  agree  with  me  that  while  in 
form  these  demands  maintain  the  independence  and  in- 
tegrity of  China,  in  substance  they  transfer  the  sov- 
ereignty of  the  nation  to  Japan. 

Some  Americans  may  say  that  the  United  States  deeply 
regrets  the  overthrow  of  Chinese  nationality  by  a  rival 
government,  but  that  the  United  States  is  not  concerned 
save  as  a  friendly  neighbor  in  the  maintenance  of  Chinese 
sovereignty.  But  you  can  easily  point  out  the  error  of 
this  conclusion.  So  long  as  the  integrity  of  China  and  the 
Open  Door  are  maintained,  then  whether  China  charge 
five  per  cent  upon  imports  as  at  present,  or  whether  the 
tariff  rises  to  ten  times  that  amount,  it  applies  equally 
to  the  imports  of  all  other  foreign  nations  and  leaves  the 
United  States  upon  an  equality  with  every  other  nation 
in  winning  her  fair  share  of  the  foreign  trade  of  China. 
But  if  Japan,  who  herself  is  a  manufacturing  rival  of  the 
United  States,  secures  control  of  China,  she  inevitably 
secures  for  her  subjects  the  advantages  over  outside  com- 
petitors, and  we  shall  thus  lose  our  fair  share  of  the  for- 
eign trade  of  China. 

Commercially,  the  United  States  is  no  longer  independ- 
ent of  the  rest  of  the  world.  Our  foreign  trade  in  1913 
amounted  to  $4,538,000,000.  If  this  amount  were  taken 
annually  from  the  products  of  the  American  people,  many 
of  our  industries  would  be  paralyzed  and  many  of  our 
workmen  out  of  employment.  The  maintenance  of  our 
prosperity  is  essential  to  the  growth  of  our  foreign  trade 
and  the  growth  of  our  foreign  trade  is  essential  to  the 
growth  of  the  United  States.    .    .  . 

All  arguments  to  the  effect  that  this  foreign  trade  with 


THE  BISHOP  IX  CHINA  147 


China  will  be  greater  under  Japanese  control  concede  our 
first  contention  of  Japan's  purpose  to  control  China ;  and 
rest  upon  the  further  assumption  that  there  is  no  com- 
mercial advantage  accruing  to  a  nation  from  its  control 
of  another  nation — an  assumption  which  neither  the 
United  States  nor  any  other  government  ever  has  con- 
ceded. Any  administration  which  fails  to  face  the  condi- 
tions now  confronting  us  on  the  Pacific  and  fails  to  pre- 
serve the  opportunities  for  the  commerce  of  the  United 
States  with  China  will  be  condemned  to  shame  and  con- 
tempt by  the  future  historians  of  the  United  States. 

Moreover,  we  have  an  historic  policy  in  regard  to  the 
Pacific  Basin.  Anson  Burlingame  in  1868  made  the 
treaty  between  the  United  States  and  China  which  ad- 
mitted China  into  the  family  of  nations.  It  was  the  in- 
fluence of  this  treaty  and  the  determination  of  Great 
Britain  to  stand  with  the  United  States  upon  it  which  led 
Sir  Michael  Hicks-Beach  to  write,  January  17,  1898: 
"The  government  of  Great  Britain  is  absolutely  deter- 
mined, at  whatever  cost,  even  if  necessary  at  the  cost  of 
war,  that  the  door  of  China  shall  not  be  shut."  It  was  the 
adherence  of  Western  nations  to  this  principle  which  led 
Secretary  Hay  to  secure  in  1900  a  treaty  signed  by  every 
leading  nation  in  the  world  pledging  them  all  to  respect 
the  integrity  of  the  Chinese  Empire  and  to  maintain  the 
Open  Door.  It  is  not  to  be  wondered  at,  therefore,  that 
in  March,  1901,  when  Russia  was  concluding  a  bargain 
with  China  for  the  occupation  of  Manchuria,  Secretary 
Hay  protested  against  the  conclusion  of  any  agreement 
between  any  foreign  nation  and  China  which  in  any  way 
affected  unfavorably  either  of  these  principles.  Again, 
Secretary  Root,  November  30,  1908,  secured  a  firm  agree- 
ment between  the  United  States  and  Japan  to  preserve 


148  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


the  integrity  of  China  and  the  Open  Door,  and  a  further 
pledge  that  in  case  any  complication  arose  in  China 
neither  Japan  nor  the  United  States  would  take  any  step 
without  frank  and  full  discussion  with  the  other.  We  are 
not  advocating  the  grasping  of  any  privileges  or  oppor- 
tunities by  the  United  States  in  China  which  are  not 
equally  open  to  the  other  nations.  But  the  maintenance 
of  our  historic  policy  in  favor  of  the  integrity  of  China 
and  the  Open  Door  is  an  absolutely  essential  condition  for 
equal  opportunity  for  our  commerce  in  the  Pacific  Basin. 

Again,  the  Alaska  Purchase  gave  us  a  line  of  islands 
with  open  ports  free  from  ice  during  the  winter,  and  of 
sufficient  size  to  accommodate  the  largest  navies  of  the 
world,  all  the  way  across  the  northern  border  of  the 
Pacific  from  the  United  States  to  within  750  miles  of  Asia. 
Moreover,  the  distance  from  San  Francisco  to  Tokyo  is 
243  miles  shorter  by  this  route  along  the  Aleutian  Islands 
than  by  what  appears  upon  the  map  to  be  a  straight  line 
between  these  two  cities.  Harold  Bolce  says  of  Dutch 
Harbor,  Waterfalls,  Constantine  Bay,  Lost  Harbor, 
Baldwin  Bay,  and  Glory  of  Russia,  that  these  splendid 
harbors — of  inestimable  value  for  trade  upon  the  Pacific 
— may  prove  in  the  twentieth  century  the  greatest  geo- 
graphical discovery  of  the  nineteenth  century.  The 
acquisition  of  Hawaii,  the  key  to  the  Pacific,  was  another 
step  taken  toward  the  maintenance  by  the  United  States 
of  a  strategic  position  in  the  Pacific  Basin.  Once  more, 
the  Philippine  Islands  fell  into  our  lap  in  1898  without 
any  planning  upon  our  part  and  when  we  little  dreamed  of 
their  value  for  strategic  purposes  upon  the  Pacific.  If 
we  grant  the  Filipinos  independence  as  soon  as  they  are 
prepared  for  it,  as  we  expect  to  do,  nevertheless  our  his- 
toric connection  with  them  and  the  service  we  are  render- 


THE  BISHOP  IN  CHINA  149 


ing  them,  and  our  probable  future  relations  with  them, 
especialty  if  we  keep  a  single  port  among  them,  must  in 
the  end  contribute  to  our  commercial  and  political  in- 
fluence in  the  Pacific  Basin.  Finally,  the  completion  of 
the  Panama  Canal  gives  even  the  eastern  coast  of  the 
United  States  a  geographical  position  3,000  miles  nearer 
Japan  and  China  than  the  seaports  along  the  western 
coast  of  Europe;  and  just  as  trade  between  the  western 
world  and  Asia  made  Venice,  made  Spain,  and  has  con- 
tributed to  the  greatness  of  Britain,  so  trade  in  the  Pacific 
Basin  will  make  the  great  nations  of  the  twentieth  century 
and  after. 

Rising  to  higher  moral  considerations,  surely  the 
United  States  is  acting  in  the  best  interests  of  China  in 
quietly  but  firmly  protesting  against  her  absorption  in 
Japan;  and  China  though  weak  to-day  will  be  an  exceed- 
ingly powerful  factor  before  the  century  is  half  through. 
Hence,  Chinese  friendship  will  add  immensely  to  the  moral, 
financial,  and  political  influence  of  the  United  States  dur- 
ing the  twentieth  century.  Gratitude  exists  among  na- 
tions as  well  as  among  individuals ;  and  the  gratitude  of 
this  truly  great  people,  numbering  more  than  a  fifth  of 
the  human  race,  may  become  a  priceless  asset  to  us  in  the 
centuries  to  come. 

Moreover,  the  United  States  is  acting  quite  as  truly  in 
the  best  interests  of  Japan  as  of  China.  It  is  simply  im- 
possible for  Japan  long  to  dominate  by  military  force  a 
population  seven  or  eight  times  as  numerous  as  her  own 
and,  man  for  man,  quite  as  strong  as  her  own  people.  I 
made  a  trip  of  between  three  and  four  thousand  miles  in 
China  at  the  outbreak  of  the  revolution  in  1911  and  also 
at  the  outbreak  of  the  second  revolution  or  rebellion  in 
1913.    On  the  first  trip,  out  of  perhaps  a  thousand  judg- 


150  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


mcnts  expressed  by  Chinese,  I  found  only  one  person 
favoring  the  Manchus.  On  the  second  trip,  out  of  almost 
a  similar  number  of  judgments  expressed  by  Chinese,  I 
found  only  one  favoring  the  second  uprising  of  Hwang 
Hsing  and  Sun  Yat  Sen.  Subsequent  events  amply  con- 
firmed the  judgment  formed  by  these  two  trips.  I  have 
just  completed  another  four  months'  trip  of  China.  The 
Chinese  are  eagerly  discussing  the  situation  with  Japan, 
and  on  this  trip  not  a  single  person  favored  Japanese 
control.  On  the  contrary,  every  Chinese  expressing  an 
opinion  was  willing  to  fight  for  China's  integrity  and  inde- 
pendence. History  confirms  this  conviction  of  the  im- 
possibility of  Japan  placating  the  Chinese.  Formosa, 
occupied  by  Japan  in  1895,  is  not  yet  pacified.  The 
Chinese  started  over  fifty  rebellions  for  the  overthrow  of 
the  Manchus,  one  of  them,  the  Taiping  Rebellion,  costing 
over  twenty  million  lives,  and  all  of  them  costing  probably 
the  lives  of  over  a  hundred  million  persons.  Two  thou- 
sand years  of  Chinese  history  shows  a  war  upon  the 
average  every  fifteen  years,  and  the  Chinese  will  not  sur- 
render their  independence  to  Japan  without  many,  many, 
many  uprisings  and  revolutions.  Thus  the  universal 
sentiment  of  China  to-day  and  the  history  of  China  lead 
to  the  strong  conviction  that  Japan  can  never  succeed  in 
pacifying  China  by  force. 

The  indebtedness  of  Japan  in  proportion  to  her  wealth 
is  sixteenfold  heavier  than  the  indebtedness  of  the  United 
States.  It  was  the  pressure  of  this  indebtedness  and  the 
danger  of  revolution,  unrecognized  by  the  world  but  very 
real,  which  led  to  Count  Okuma's  recall  to  office  after 
eighteen  years  of  retirement.  It  is  simply  impossible  for 
Japan  to  exploit  China  without  a  large  increase  of  her 
army,  involving  an  increase  of  this  indebtedness.  Even 


THE  BISHOP  IX  CHINA  151 


should  the  present  Administration,  out  of  false  sentimen- 
tality instead  of  real  friendship  for  Japan,  fail  to  warn 
her  of  the  seriousness  of  her  proposed  demands  upon 
China,  future  administrations  of  the  United  States  and 
the  other  governments  of  the  world  at  the  close  of  the 
present  struggle  as  well  as  constant  uprisings  in  China 
will  make  impossible  Japan's  permanent  maintenance  of 
the  authority  she  is  now  trying  to  seize  in  China  through 
secrecy  and  threats  of  force.  Moreover,  Japan's  true 
policy  in  the  Far  East  is  to  strive  to  gain  the  commercial 
and  industrial  leadership  in  the  Pacific  Basin  in  the 
twentieth  century  as  Great  Britain  gained  the  commercial 
and  industrial  leadership  in  the  Atlantic  Basin  in  the 
nineteenth  century.  Japan  should  also  aim  at  intellectual 
leadership  in  the  Pacific  Basin  similar  to  that  which 
Greece  secured  in  the  Mediterranean,  only  she  ought  to 
aim  at  such  leadership  through  the  arts  and  applied 
sciences  rather  than  through  philosophy.  We  believe  that 
the  Japanese  are  capable  of  philosophic  leadership  in  the 
Pacific  Basin.  Leadership  in  the  three  directions  of  com- 
merce, of  intellect,  and  of  philosophy  will  make  Japan  one 
of  the  greatest  nations  upon  earth.  But  leadership  in 
any  one  of  these  directions  is  clearly  impossible  through 
any  attempted  military  control  of  the  Chinese  nation.  We 
believe  also  that  the  Japanese  leaders  and  the  Japanese 
people  are  essentially  a  reasonable  people,  and  that  they 
are  capable  of  a  scientific  estimate  of  their  possibilities 
and  limitations.  A  firm  policy  at  the  present  time  will 
conserve  interests  of  priceless  value  to  humanity  and  will 
win  lasting  renown  and  the  just  gratitude  of  posterity  for 
the  statesmen  who  maintain  it. 

Cordially  yours, 

J.  W.  Bashford. 


152  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


A  letter  on  the  same  subject  addressed  to 
President  Woodrow  Wilson  is  the  courageous 
utterance  of  a  prophet-statesman: 

Peking,  China. 
March  12,  1915. 
His  Excellency  Woodrow  Wilson, 
President  of  the  United  States, 
Washington,  D.  C. 

Dear  Mr.  Wilson : 

You  were  kind  enough  to  ask  me  in  1911  to  write  you 
about  Chinese  matters  of  interest  to  the  United  States.  I 
am  sending  by  accompanying  mail  a  letter  to  Secretary 
Bryan  which  I  hope  you  may  read.  I  add  this  word  about 
missions  because  you  and  Mr.  Bryan  appreciate  mission 
work. 

In  the  very  nature  of  the  case  every  American  mis- 
sionary, Catholic  and  Protestant,  sympathizes  with  the 
Chinese  Republic  in  its  desire  to  preserve  its  independence 
and  integrity.  Indeed,  while  our  missionaries  are  not 
preaching  politics,  our  usefulness  with  the  Chinese  would 
be  immediately  at  an  end  if  they  felt  that  we  were  out  of 
sympathy  with  their  aspirations  to  preserve  their  national 
freedom  and  independence.  The  Japanese  government 
understands  that  all  missionaries,  and  especially  Ameri- 
cans, whether  they  express  it  or  not,  feel  in  their  hearts 
hostility  to  any  effort  on  their  part  to  secure  the  control 
of  China  by  threats  of  force.  Christianity  inspires  in- 
dividuals to  be  loyal  to  God  rather  than  to  men,  and  to 
contend  for  freedom  to  worship  him  according  to  the 
dictates  of  their  consciences.  Such  convictions  neces- 
sarily are  in  conflict  with  any  attempt  at  military  dicta- 
tion to  a  nation  by  an  alien  government  and  race. 


THE  BISHOP  IN  CHINA  153 


All  we  beg  you  to  do  is  to  notify  the  Japanese  govern- 
ment of  your  anxiety  over  her  negotiations  with  China, 
of  your  expectation  that  she  will  not  press  by  threats  of 
force  conditions  upon  China  compromising  her  dignity 
as  a  nation  or  in  any  degree  infringing  upon  her  sov- 
ereignty, and  assuring  Japan  in  the  most  friendly  spirit 
but  with  absolute  frankness  that  any  conditions  extorted 
from  China  now  in  regard  to  exclusive  control  by  Japan 
of  all  new  railways,  mines,  and  internal  improvements  in 
China  and  also  demanding  freedom  of  residence  in  parts 
of  China  without  the  surrender  of  extraterritoriality  by 
the  Japanese,  and  the  joint  control  of  Japan  and  China 
of  the  Chinese  police  in  important  places,  must  seriously 
affect  the  trade  and  political  relations  of  other  nations 
with  China,  and  in  the  very  nature  of  the  case  must  there- 
fore come  up  for  revision  at  the  close  of  the  present 
European  War.  In  view  of  the  fact  that  Japan  and  the 
United  States  are  five  thousand  miles  apart,  and  espe- 
cially of  Japan's  heavy  national  debt,  we  do  not  believe 
that  such  a  firm  but  friendly  note  can  possibly  involve  war 
between  the  two  nations. 

In  case  our  appeal  to  you  fails,  which  seems  incredible, 
it  can  fail  only  through  your  conviction  that  our  people 
are  unwilling  to  see  you  put  forth  any  effort  to  guard 
American  interests  and  the  interests  of  humanity  in  the 
Far  East.  In  that  case,  greatly  as  we  dread  appearing 
in  print  upon  any  subject  which  may  appear  contro- 
versial, we  are  willing  to  assist  in  all  possible  ways  in 
letting  the  American  people  know  of  the  events  which  are 
transpiring  in  the  Far  East.  Our  people  have  a  right 
to  this  knowledge  and  we  shall  be  unwilling  longer  to 
stand  idly  by  and  see  consummated  plans  which  will  bring 
to  naught  that  for  which  we  have  given  our  lives  and  that 


154  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


which  we  count  dearer  than  life  itself.  Nor  can  we  re- 
main dumb  oracles  and  witness  this  national  outrage  of 
Japan  upon  China.  An  influential  body  of  China's  mis- 
sionaries are  willing  to  state  the  facts,  thus  clearing  our 
consciences  before  God  and  man,  and  to  leave  the  con- 
sequences with  Him  who  controls  the  destinies  of  man  and 
of  nations.  We  feel  sure  that  you  sympathize  with  us, 
that  you  share  our  conviction  that  the  Christian  religion 
has  a  great  mission  among  the  millions  of  China,  and  that 
you  will  do  your  utmost  to  prevent  at  once  an  outrage 
upon  China  and  the  bringing  to  naught  of  mission  work  in 

this  land.  „  ,. 

Cordially  yours, 

James  W.  Bashford. 


Some  well-informed  Chinese,  also  prominent 
foreigners,  did  not  agree  with  the  interpretation 
which  Bashford  from  the  outset  placed  upon  "The 
Twenty-one  Demands."  Subsequent  develop- 
ments, however,  soon  revealed  the  accuracy  of  his 
judgment  of  the  situation.  Bashford  at  once  began 
writing  letters  to  influential  Americans  at  home 
urging  them  to  lay  the  situation  before  the  Secre- 
tary of  State  and  President  Wilson.  He  also  sought 
to  impress  upon  Japanese  leaders  the  fact  that  the 
highest  interests  of  Japan  would  be  saved  and 
priceless  interests  of  humanity  would  be  con- 
served by  Japan's  respecting  the  territorial  in- 
tegrity of  China.  While  he  was  trying  to  arouse 
his  own  country  to  protest  to  Japan  against  her 
threatened  aggressions  in  China,  he  was  earnestly 


THE  BISHOP  IN  CHINA  155 


counseling  Yuan  Shi  Kai,  through  Admiral  Tsai, 
to  delay  the  negotiations  with  Japan  until  the 
foreign  governments  were  more  fully  apprised 
of  the  situation,  and  to  refuse  to  sign  any  de- 
mands which  would  compromise  China's  sover- 
eignty. From  the  very  beginning  Bashford  urged 
in  the  most  emphatic  terms  the  territorial  integrity 
of  China.  At  the  time  that  England  was  cementing 
her  compact  with  Japan,  she  gave  notice  to  China 
that  she  must  make  terms  with  Japan.  The  only 
terms  that  Japan  would  accept  were  that  she  should 
remain  in  Manchuria.  September  29,  1914,  Count 
Okuma  assured  Bishop  Bashford  and  others  in  an 
interview  that  Japan  would  make  no  aggression  on 
China  while  he  was  premier.  Bashford  interpreted 
the  twenty-one  demands  as  a  betrayal  of  Count 
Okuma's  pledge,  and  as  duplicity  on  his  part  in 
yielding  to  the  military  party  in  Japan.  At  the 
same  time  he  was  making  false  statements  to  the 
public  concerning  the  demands  of  Japan.  When 
Admiral  Tsai,  secretary  to  Yuan  Shi  Kai,  heard 
that  Bishop  Bashford  with  Bishop  Roots  had 
drawn  up  a  paper  signed  by  leading  representatives 
of  the  American  Episcopal,  Baptist,  Presbyterian, 
Congregational,  and  Methodist  Churches  in  China, 
and  that  he  had  also  urged  Doctor  Paul  Reinsch, 
the  American  Minister  in  Peking,  to  press  upon 
Sir  John  Jordan  the  impossibility  of  Great  Britain's 
going  to  war  for  Belgium  and  at  the  same  time 


156  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


tolerating  an  outrage  on  China,  Admiral  Tsai 
grasped  the  Bishop's  hand  and  said:  "I  want  to 
thank  you  in  behalf  of  Yuan  Shi  Kai  and  of  China, 
and  to  assure  you  that  nations  as  well  as  individuals 
are  capable  of  gratitude." 

At  this  crisis  Bashford  was  requested  by  the 
Chinese  government  to  go  to  Washington  and  to 
lay  before  the  United  States  government  the  situa- 
tion. He  was  offered  ten  thousand  dollars  gold  for 
his  expenses.  He  declined  to  accept  the  money  or 
to  represent  the  Chinese  government.  He  dis- 
claimed any  desire  to  exercise  political  influence  or 
to  meddle  in  the  affairs  of  state.  He  was  in  China 
as  a  Christian  minister.  When  his  advice  was 
sought,  he  plainly  declared  his  judgment  concern- 
ing the  policy  demanded  by  international  justice 
and  the  interests  of  the  common  people. 

In  the  spring  of  1915,  upon  the  urgent  request  of 
the  Board  of  Foreign  Missions  of  the  Methodist 
Episcopal  Church,  Bishop  Bashford  returned  to 
America.  Immediately  upon  his  arrival  in  New 
York  he  went  to  Washington  for  an  interview  with 
Secretary  of  State  William  J.  Bryan  and  President 
Wilson.  Here  he  learned  that  the  Japanese  minister 
had  assured  Secretary  Bryan  that  the  promise 
made  by  the  Japanese  government  to  suspend 
Group  V  of  the  Demands  meant  that  his  govern- 
ment would  not  again  urge  these  demands  upon 
China.   Bashford  called  Secretary  Bryan's  atten- 


THE  BISHOP  IN  CHINA 


157 


tion  to  the  fact  that  while  Japan  had  promised  to 
abandon  the  demands,  the  written  agreement  used 
the  word  suspend.  Bishop  Bashford's  interpreta- 
tion did  not  question  the  good  faith  of  the  Japanese 
ambassador,  but  it  did  question  the  sincerity  of  the 
Japanese  government  as  represented  by  Count 
Okuma  and  the  militarist  party. 

In  view  of  Great  Britain's  attitude  and  of  the 
preoccupation  of  the  Western  nations  in  the  World 
War,  in  view  further  of  the  political  chaos  existing 
in  China,  and  the  consequent  helplessness  of  the 
government  and  the  intrigues  of  the  militarists  in 
Japan,  there  was  imminent  danger  of  China's 
yielding  to  the  demands  of  Japan  and  forfeiting  her 
territorial  sovereignty.  Bashford's  service  was  in 
interpreting  immediately  the  meaning  of  the 
twenty-one  demands,  in  seeking  to  arouse  the 
American  government  to  the  gravity  of  the  situa- 
tion; while  at  the  same  time  he  was  trying  to 
encourage  and  steady  the  Chinese  to  resist  further 
aggressions.  At  no  time  did  Bishop  Bashford  be- 
come a  Chinese  partisan.  His  dealings  with 
Chinese,  Japanese,  and  American  officials  alike  were 
on  the  high  plane  of  statesmanship  free  from  racial 
and  national  prejudice  and  actuated  always  by  the 
spirit  of  Christian  good  will. 

But  Bishop  Bashford's  claim  to  the  title  of  states- 
man rests  not  so  much  upon  his  political  sagacity 
as  upon  his  moral  insight.  The  moral  quality  of 


158         JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


every  decision  or  deed  was  to  him  the  determinative 
consideration.  When  the  issues  of  the  World  War 
became  clearly  moral,  he  boldly  declared  that 
President  Wilson's  policy  of  neutrality  was  im- 
possible. Like  the  old  Hebrew  prophets,  he  be- 
lieved in  the  strategy  of  the  stars ;  he  saw  the  moral 
principle  in  national  events;  he  discovered  divine 
providences  in  the  weltering  confusion  of  the  times; 
where  others  saw  only  chaos  he  discerned  the 
steadily  unfolding  plans  of  God. 

With  an  inextinguishable  faith  in  the  principles 
of  the  spiritual  kingdom,  Bashford  wrote  in  1916: 
"Militarism,  whether  in  the  form  of  a  German 
army,  or  a  British  navy,  or  a  French  Napoleon — 
militarism,  either  as  Japanese  Shintoism  or  Russian 
autocracy,  or  the  white  race's  claim  to  dominate 
the  globe,  is  doomed  under  a  divine  providence  in 
which  God  has  made  of  one  blood  all  the  nations 
of  the  earth.  The  human  race  cannot  rest  either  in 
the  political  anarchy  of  the  extreme  pacifists,  or  in 
the  political  and  industrial  despotism  of  the  ex- 
treme advocates  of  efficiency." 

To  know  what  Bishop  Bashford  actually  wrought 
in  the  remaking  of  China  one  must  be  able  to 
estimate  unseen  values.  His  efforts  in  behalf  of  the 
national  integrity  of  China  are  of  secondary  impor- 
tance in  comparison  with  his  heroic  and  prodigious 
labor  for  the  social  uplift  and  the  spiritual  awaken- 
ing of  the  people.  In  the  fourteen  years  he  spent  in 


THE  BISHOP  IN  CHINA  159 


China  he  traveled  throughout  all  the  provinces 
over  one  hundred  thousand  miles,  visiting  the 
churches,  schools,  and  hospitals,  and  studying  the 
life  of  the  people.  During  this  period  his  work  in 
behalf  of  China  required  him  to  return  repeatedly 
to  America.  He  averaged  during  these  fourteen 
years  in  the  Orient  twenty-five  thousand  miles  a 
year,  or  a  total  of  three  hundred  thousand  miles. 
He  was  active  in  promoting  the  opium  reform,  and 
for  many  months  was  active  in  the  work  of  famine 
relief. 

He  appealed  through  the  Associated  Press  for  a 
day  of  prayer  for  China  in  1913  which  created 
deeper  sympathy  for  the  Chinese  Republic 
throughout  the  Western  world. 

In  addition  to  a  voluminous  correspondence  he 
wrote  for  publication  over  two  hundred  articles  for 
the  press  covering  various  phases  of  Christian 
work  in  China.  During  this  period  of  his  residence 
in  China,  he  also  wrote:  God's  Missionary  Plan  for 
the  World,  China — an  Interpretation,  The  Oregon 
Missions,  besides  the  manuscript  copy  of  a  Life 
of  Christ.  He  wrote  fifty-four  volumes  of  notes 
describing  his  travels,  work,  interviews  with  public 
men,  and  reflections  upon  his  reading.  During  his 
travels  in  America,  he  was  preaching  or  lecturing 
almost  daily  trying  to  arouse  the  church  to  her 
missionary  opportunity  and  to  lay  China  upon  the 
heart  of  America.  The  church  will  not  soon  forget 


160         JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 

the  story  of  his  devotion.  In  his  notebooks  and  in 
the  reminiscences  of  missionaries  and  native  Chris- 
tians all  over  China  we  have  a  story  of  heroic  faith, 
unselfish  devotion,  holy  living,  and  great  achieve- 
ment unsurpassed  since  the  days  of  the  apostle 
Paul. 


CHAPTER  VIII 


THE  AUTHOR 

The  literary  work  of  James  W.  Bashford  com- 
prises six  substantial  volumes  and  more  than  two 
hundred  pamphlets  and  articles  published  in 
periodicals. 

His  first  book  was  a  small  volume  which  ap- 
peared in  1903,  entitled  Wesley  and  Goethe.  It  was 
dedicated  to  the  class  of  1903  of  Ohio  Wesleyan 
University.  It  is  a  sermonic  study  in  religious 
biography.  The  author  traces  the  spiritual  develop- 
ment of  Goethe  as  the  apostle  of  modern  culture 
and  of  Wesley  as  the  apostle  of  Christian  expe- 
rience. Some  students  would  question  Bashford's 
interpretation  of  Goethe's  work.  The  comparisons 
which  he  makes  in  this  character  study  are  some- 
times colored  by  the  sermonic  urge.  But  as  an 
outline  of  the  main  features  of  the  life  and  struggle 
of  Wesley  and  Goethe  for  spiritual  perfection  and 
as  an  appeal  for  self -culture  and  Christian  faith  as 
the  only  solution  of  the  problem  of  life  it  is  a  noble 
utterance. 

In  1908  he  published  a  little  volume  of  one  hun- 
dred  and   eighteen   pages   entitled   China  and 
Methodism  in  which  he  presented  in  a  vivid  form 
161 


162         JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


the  outstanding  facts  concerning  China  which 
would  naturally  enlist  the  interest  of  the  American 
church  in  Christianizing  China.  His  pamphlets  on 
The  Awakening  of  China  sought  not  only  to  put 
China  on  the  map  of  Methodism  but  on  the  heart 
of  Christendom. 

The  inspiration  of  a  little  volume  entitled  God's 
Missionary  Plan  for  the  World  came  to  Bishop 
Bashford  after  reading  R.  F.  Horton's  The  Bible  a 
Missionary  Book.  The  discussion  gives  a  clear 
understanding  of  the  magnitude  and  the  signifi- 
cance of  the  missionary  program.  Bishop  Bashford 
traces  the  indications  of  the  Divine  purpose 
through  the  Old  and  New  Testaments  in  the 
evangelization  and  Christianization  of  the  whole 
world.  He  interprets  the  Christian  missionary 
enterprise  as  a  vast  human  undertaking  requiring 
the  consecration  of  wealth  and  the  leadership  of 
thoroughly  trained  missionaries,  who  are  endowed 
with  the  infinite  resources  of  the  Divine  Spirit.  In 
the  closing  chapter,  on  "The  Divine  Providence  and 
Missions,"  we  see  the  mind  and  faith  of  Bashford  at 
their  best.  Surveying  the  actual  workings  of 
Christianity  in  pagan  lands,  in  the  satisfactions  of 
the  missionaries,  in  the  transformation  of  the  lives 
of  the  followers  of  Jesus  Christ,  in  the  social  and 
political  changes,  and  in  the  world  movements  that 
are  making  mightily  for  the  spread  of  Christianity, 
Bashford  gives  an  inspiring  vision  of  "the  divine 


THE  AUTHOR 


163 


sweep  of  the  kingdom  of  heaven  on  earth  and  the 
unfailing  promise  of  God."  Considering  his  heavy 
administrative  duties  as  college  president  and 
bishop  and  his  voluminous  correspondence,  Bishop 
Bashford's  literary  output  is  amazing.  The  titles  of 
representative  published  articles  indicate  the  vari- 
ety of  his  studies  and  the  versatility  of  his  mind. 


The  True  Church   1888 

Problems  of  the  Twentieth  Century   1895 

Christianity  and  Education   1891 

The  Bible  and  Woman   1889 

Does  the  Bible  Allow  Woman  to  Preach? .  .  .  1879 

A  Romance  of  Missions   1888 

The  Lord's  Day  and  the  World's  Fair   1892 

The  Admission  of  Women  to  the  General 

Conference   1895 

The  Preacher   1900 

National  Churches  or  World-Wide  Denom- 
inations   1918 

The  Supreme  Task  in  This  Century  of  the 

Churches  of  the  Reformation   1916 

Political  Problems  of  the  20th  Century   1917 

How  to  Promote  a  Revival   1904 

Comparative  Results  of  Mission  Work  in 

China   1904 

Union  of  Methodists  in  Japan   1904 

First  Impressions  of  China   1904 

The  Church's  Opportunity  in  China   1905 


164         JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


A  Trip  on  the  Yangtse   1904 

Giving  as  a  Part  of  Worship   1909 

Denominational  Policies  in  Their  Relation 
to  Mission  Work   1914 


The  most  important  literary  contribution  of 
Bishop  Bashford  is  China — an  Interpretation,  a 
volume  of  six  hundred  and  twenty  pages  published 
in  1916.  Early  in  his  residence  in  China  he  con- 
ceived the  idea  of  this  book,  which  was  completed 
after  twelve  years  of  exhaustive  study  and  prodi- 
gious labor.  The  book  is  recognized  both  by 
Chinese  and  foreign  scholars  as  one  of  the  most 
reliable  sources  of  information  concerning  China. 
In  every  list  of  a  dozen  valuable  books  on  China, 
China — an  Interpretation  has  a  place. 

The  purpose  of  the  writer  is  unique  in  this 
respect.  He  sought  not  simply  to  gather  reliable 
information  concerning  China  and  her  people  by 
thorough  sifting  of  facts  and  wide  comparative 
studies,  but  also  to  interpret  the  facts,  so  that 
China  might  be  better  known  both  by  the  Chinese 
themselves  and  by  the  world.  The  author  set  out 
not  as  a  partisan  to  confirm  certain  theories  about 
China,  "not  to  discover  in  the  Chinese  what  we 
wish  were  true,  but  rather  to  recognize  those  dom- 
inant characteristics,  those  fundamental  traits  of 
Chinese  character  with  which  the  rest  of  the  world 
must  reckon." 


THE  AUTHOR 


165 


Confidence  in  the  trustworthiness  of  this  book  is 
reassured  when  we  discover  that  it  is  not  the  hasty 
product  of  a  few  months  of  superficial  observation, 
but  is  the  growth  of  twelve  years  of  residence  in 
China,  of  one  hundred  thousand  miles  of  travel  in 
the  Orient,  of  numberless  conversations  with  Chi- 
nese and  foreigners,  of  the  reading  of  more  than 
five  hundred  volumes  on  China,  and  of  long  and 
thorough  study  of  the  problems  of  the  Far  East. 
The  book  deals  with  the  facts  concerning  the  in- 
dustrial, commercial,  and  educational  life  in  China, 
the  literature  and  law,  the  philosophy  and  religion 
of  the  Chinese,  the  political  history  and  the  present 
relations  with  other  nations  in  the  Orient,  and  the 
influence  of  Western  civilization.  Throughout  this 
endeavor  to  interpret  the  problems  of  the  Pacific 
Basin  to  Western  peoples  Bishop  Bashford's  work 
evidences  no  trace  of  national  partisanship,  but 
rather  a  fair-minded,  judicial  attempt  to  face  the 
facts  without  exaggerating  defects  and  to  set  forth 
the  fundamental  principles  of  human  development, 
which,  according  to  the  writer,  lead  up  to  Christ  as 
the  only  final  solution  of  the  problems  of  the 
Chinese.  Believing,  as  Putnam  Weale  puts  it,  that 
"the  Chinese  question  is  the  world  question  of  the 
twentieth  century,"  Bashford  has  sought  to  give 
such  an  understanding  of  China — socially,  polit- 
ically, economically,  and  religiously — as  will  make 
for  better  international  relations,  and  for  the 


166         JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


advancement  of  the  Chinese  toward  their  provi- 
dential goal.  The  picture  which  the  author  gives 
of  the  physical  resources  of  the  country,  with  its 
four  hundred  and  seventy-eight  species  of  plants, 
limitless  coal  and  mineral  deposits,  fertility  of  soil, 
vast  population  of  good-natured,  industrious,  in- 
genious, resourceful  people,  with  such  conservatism 
toward  their  institutions  and  tenacity  of  ideals  as 
to  have  maintained  a  distinctive  civilization  for 
more  than  three  thousand  years,  is  most  impressive. 
Bishop  Bashford  gives  a  keen  analysis  of  the 
economic  conditions  of  the  country,  of  the  short- 
comings of  the  Chinese  educational  system,  of  the 
collapse  of  stable  government,  of  the  barrenness  of 
their  religion,  and  of  the  awakening  of  a  new  na- 
tional consciousness  through  the  influence  of  Chris- 
tian ideals  and  Western  civilization.  His  exposition 
of  the  moral  philosophy  of  Confucius,  of  the 
paralysis  of  China's  civilization  for  two  thousand 
years  under  the  dead  hand  of  Taoism  and 
Buddhism,  is  most  illuminating.  The  reader  is 
never  bewildered  or  lost  in  a  tangle  of  philosophical 
speculations,  but  is  guided  in  making  an  honest, 
intelligent  appraisal  of  the  religions  of  China  from 
the  actual  life  of  China. 

The  closing  chapters  of  the  book,  "China  and 
Japan,"  "China  and  the  United  States,"  "China 
and  the  World,"  read  like  a  romance  in  the  light  of 
the  international  developments  since  they  were 


THE  AUTHOR 


167 


written.  The  author  is  neither  anti-Japanese  nor 
jingoistic  American,  on  the  one  hand,  nor,  on  the 
other,  a  visionary  internationalist.  With  thorough 
knowledge  of  the  economic  conditions  and  the 
political  situation,  with  true  statesmanship  and 
lofty  idealism,  and  with  the  Christian  philosophy 
of  history,  he  sets  forth  the  solution  of  the  problem 
in  the  following  measures:  first,  introduce  Chris- 
tianity into  China  as  rapidly  as  possible;  second, 
develop  her  natural  resources  through  the  applied 
sciences;  third,  adopt  just  and  wise  regulations  of 
immigration  to  America;  fourth,  "by  Christian 
conduct  and  service  assure  the  people  of  every 
land  of  the  desire  of  the  white  races  not  to  exploit 
them  but  to  serve  them."  In  short,  the  conclusion 
and  vital  message  of  the  book  is  that  Christianity 
is  not  only  practicable  but  is  the  only  solution 
possible  of  the  problems  of  the  East  and  the  West. 

The  Oregon  Missions,  published  in  1918,  was 
Bishop  Bashford's  last  book.  It  represents  thirty 
years  of  study  and  painstaking  research  for  original 
sources  of  information  concerning  the  acquiring  of 
the  Oregon  Country  by  the  United  States  and  its 
early  settlement.  The  result  of  this  long  interest 
in  the  early  history  of  the  Northwest  territory  is  a 
distinct  historical  contribution,  characterized  by 
fairness  in  judgment,  historical  accuracy,  and 
dramatic  interest. 

The  beginning  of  this  book  was  an  address  on 


168  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


"A  Romance  of  Missions"  given  in  Boston  in  1882 
and  later  published  as  a  tract  which  had  a  wide 
circulation.  At  that  time  the  young  preacher 
was  fascinated  by  the  story  of  the  yeomen-like 
work  done  by  Marcus  Whitman  and  the  early 
missionaries  in  behalf  of  the  Christianizing  of  the 
American  Indians,  also  in  their  efforts  which  led  to 
determining  the  boundary  line  between  the  United 
States  and  Great  Britain  from  the  Rocky  Moun- 
tains to  the  Pacific  Ocean.  Bashford's  further 
study  of  the  subject  led  him  to  the  conclusion  that 
there  were  other  actors  in  this  historical  drama  that 
had  not  been  duly  recognized.  Chief  among  these 
was  Jason  Lee,  who  preceded  Marcus  Whitman  to 
Oregon  by  two  years,  and  a  company  of  mis- 
sionaries of  the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church.  The 
writer  traces  with  utmost  fairness  the  story  of  the 
contribution  made  to  the  development  of  the  great 
Northwest  territory  by  the  Hudson's  Bay  Com- 
pany, the  Roman  Catholic  missionaries,  Doctor 
McLoughlin,  who  represented  the  British  govern- 
ment, Doctor  Whitman  and  the  settlers  who 
accompanied  him,  and  by  Jason  Lee  and  the  mis- 
sionaries of  the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church. 

The  portraits  of  three  noted  pioneers  in  early 
American  history — Dr.  John  McLoughlin,  Mar- 
cus Whitman,  and  Jason  Lee — make  a  notable 
contribution  to  biographical  studies.  Across  the 
pages  of  The  Oregon  Missions  we  follow  these  gal- 


THE  AUTHOR 


169 


lant  and  heroic  figures  who  determined  the  type  of 
the  civilization  of  the  Northwest  territory.  Here 
is  a  striking  exhibit  of  the  statesmanship  of  Chris- 
tian missions.  Jason  Lee  and  Marcus  Whitman 
with  their  followers  went  to  Oregon,  a  journey  of 
four  and  a  half  months  from  the  city  of  Washington, 
not  as  pioneers  to  develop  a  new  country  but  as 
missionaries  to  convert  the  American  Indians  to 
Christianity.  They  soon  discovered  their  larger 
task  of  laying  the  foundations  of  a  great  Chris- 
tian empire.  Here  also  we  trace  the  international 
struggle  for  the  possession  of  the  Northwest  section 
of  America,  which  resulted  in  giving  to  the  North- 
west a  strategic  position  in  the  Pacific  Basin. 

The  author  narrates  the  touching  story  of  the 
appeal  of  four  American  Indians  on  the  streets  of 
St.  Louis  for  the  white  man's  Book  of  Heaven  and 
how  this  led  to  the  founding  of  the  Oregon  Mis- 
sions; how,  under  the  administration  of  the  Hud- 
son's Bay  Company  and  Doctor  John  McLoughlin, 
a  just  division  of  the  territory  between  Great 
Britain  and  the  United  States  was  made,  thereby 
preserving  peace  and  advancing  civilization;  how 
the  ultimate  failure  of  the  Roman  Catholic  Mis- 
sions among  the  Indians  determined  that  the 
civilization  of  the  Northwest  territory  should  be  in 
the  interest  of  liberty;  how  Marcus  Whitman 
made  a  provisional  government  possible  by  leading 
a  great  migration  to  Oregon;  how  the  Methodists, 


170  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


under  the  leadership  of  Jason  Lee,  became  the 
founders  of  a  great  state  larger  than  New  England, 
with  a  milder  climate,  with  unsurpassed  harbors, 
and  with  boundless  possibilities;  how  this  great 
territory  was  saved  to  the  United  States.  From  the 
first  page  to  the  last  this  book  is  the  story  of  a 
struggle  in  which  all  the  complex  forces  of  civiliza- 
tion are  guided  by  a  Divine  Providence  in  bringing 
the  whole  Pacific  Coast  under  the  control  of  the 
English  and  American  peoples,  both  speaking  the 
same  language  and  governed  by  the  same  ideals  in 
the  establishment  of  a  Christian  civilization. 

Bishop  Bashford  in  The  Oregon  Missions  has  not 
only  made  a  valuable  historical  contribution,  and 
rekindled  the  flame  of  missionary  devotion  and  true 
patriotism  by  the  heroic  stories  of  Whitman  and 
Lovejoy,  of  Madame  Dorion  and  Jason  Lee;  he  has 
also  performed  the  greater  service  of  showing  that 
the  philosophy  of  history  which  leaves  God  out  is 
utterly  false.  "The  only  key  to  human  history  is 
the  divine  Providence." 

The  literary  style  of  Bashford  is  the  man.  His 
language  was  always  clear,  direct,  forceful,  and 
dignified.  His  diction  revealed  wide  reading  and  a 
discriminating  literary  taste.  There  was  no  differ- 
ence between  his  speech  and  writing.  Both  his 
public  utterance  and  written  page  are  characterized 
by  a  swift  progress  in  thought  which  carries  one 
forward  by  its  own  momentum.  He  is  utterly  free 


THE  AUTHOR 


171 


from  literary  tricks.  He  had  the  fine  art  of  conceal- 
ing his  art.  There  was  a  certain  loftiness  in  Bishop 
Bashford's  mind  which  never  allowed  him  to 
descend  to  the  cheap  or  the  colloquial  in  speech. 
And  yet  his  language  is  never  stiff  or  stilted.  Every 
page  is  aglow  with  interest  and  burdened  with  some 
message.  The  charm  of  his  literary  style  was  in  his 
kindling  personality. 


CHAPTER  IX 


THE  MAN  AND  HIS  MIND 

There  were  certain  mental  traits  which  were  as 
characteristic  of  James  W.  Bashford  as  were  his 
gait  and  gestures.  The  first  was  his  mental  eager- 
ness. From  every  person  he  met  in  conversation, 
from  every  book  read  and  from  every  place  visited 
he  sought  for  some  new  fact  or  insight.  His  in- 
satiable desire  for  knowledge  would  not  let  him 
rest.  He  read  widely  and  rapidly  and  with  rare 
ability  appropriated  the  gist  of  every  book  for 
his  own  uses.  His  counsel  to  a  missionary  who 
had  just  arrived  in  China  was:  "Read  at  least 
one-half  hour  every  day  for  your  own  personal 
benefit  with  as  much  fidelity  as  you  read  the 
Bible."  His  mind  was  always  taut  with  attention. 
It  was  his  habit  to  discuss  with  another  at  the  first 
opportunity  the  subject  of  his  reading  or  study  and 
thus  clarify  or  confirm  his  own  impressions.  By  his 
mental  alertness,  wide  range  of  reading,  and  thor- 
ough assimilation  of  what  he  read  Bishop  Bash- 
ford  became  one  of  the  most  versatile-minded  men. 
It  may  truly  be  said  of  Bashford  as  J.  Richard 
Greene  said  of  himself:  "I  know  what  men  will  say 
of  me  when  I  am  dead :  They  will  say,  'He  died  learn- 
ing.' "  Bishop  Bashford  lived  and  died  learning. 
172 


THE  MAN  AND  HIS  MIND  173 


Another  mark  of  Bashford's  mind  was  his  in- 
tellectual honesty.  His  thoroughness  as  a  student 
was  inspired  by  his  sense  of  fairness  with  himself. 
He  wanted  all  the  facts  available  before  forming  a 
judgment.  Writing  of  the  formative  influences  of 
his  college  days,  he  discloses  his  literary  method: 
"I  found  in  the  writings  of  Demosthenes  more  facts 
than  in  any  other  ancient  writer,  and  that  his  skill 
as  an  orator  consisted  chiefly  in  marshaling  and 
interpreting  these  facts."  A  mannerism  in  speech 
reveals  his  habit  of  mental  integrity.  He  often 
prefaced  his  utterances  with  the  statement:  "I  am 
inclined  to  think."  He  was  sometimes  accused  of 
shifting  his  position  or  of  being  inconsistent  with 
himself.  The  charge  was  true.  But  his  changed 
views  came  not  as  the  result  of  mental  indecision 
or  from  external  pressure;  always  from  new  facts 
or  light  which  made  his  previous  position  un- 
tenable. As  one  said  of  Gladstone  it  was  true  of 
Bashford,  he  was  sometimes  inconsistent  with  him- 
self in  order  that  he  might  be  intellectually  honest. 
His  mind  was  singularly  free  from  prejudices.  He 
never  hesitated  in  acknowledging  his  own  mistakes. 
He  approached  every  question  with  the  utmost 
openmindedness,  bent  only  on  one  thing — knowing 
the  facts.  An  intimate  friend  in  the  School  of 
Theology  said  of  Bashford:  "He  is  so  determined 
to  find  solid  ground  for  his  views,  if  he  can  find  no 
authority  for  his  position,  he  preaches  a  sermon  on 


174  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


the  subject  and  quotes  from  the  sermon  to  support 
his  thesis."  This  exaggeration  indicates  his  mental 
habit  at  the  very  beginning  of  his  ministry.  As  an 
administrator,  whether  as  president  of  the  college 
or  as  bishop  of  the  church,  his  attitude  was  thor- 
oughly fair.  When  he  must  adjudicate  his  one 
question  was  always:  "What  are  the  facts  in  the 
case?"  He  sought  for  facts  instead  of  selecting 
them.  The  Chinese  said  of  him,  "He  listened  to  the 
Chinese  just  the  same  as  to  the  foreigners.  He  was 
fair  to  both."  A  student  in  the  university  with  a 
doubtful  record  was  called  before  President  Bash- 
ford.  Reporting  the  interview  he  said :  "Prexy  can 
find  out  everything  about  you  sooner  than  anybody 
I  ever  saw."  His  utterly  frank  mind  was  a  search- 
light seeking  for  truth  everywhere.  Men  differed 
radically  at  times  from  his  judgment,  but  they 
rarely  questioned  his  fairness.  He  was  sometimes 
hasty  in  judgment,  but  was  always  ready  to  revise 
his  judgment  in  accordance  with  new  facts.  When 
woman  suffrage  and  prohibition  were  unpopular 
causes  he  was  an  ardent  advocate  of  both.  Thirty 
years  before  women  were  accorded  equal  privileges 
in  the  church  Bashford  forcefully  contended  that 
they  should  be  admitted  to  the  counsels  of  the 
church  and  also  licensed  to  preach.  When  political 
partisanship  and  selfish  nationalism  were  dominant 
in  America,  he  fearlessly  pleaded  for  a  true  inter- 
nationalism. He  was  unafraid  to  hold  any  position 


THE  MAN  AND  HIS  MIND  175 


where  honest  thinking  would  lead  him,  and  he  was 
alike  unashamed  to  change  his  views  whenever  the 
facts  demanded. 

The  mind  of  Bashford  had  a  philosophic  bent. 
He  was  always  seeking  to  relate  facts  through  some 
organizing  principle  or  fundamental  law.  He  had  a 
telescopic  kind  of  mind  which  swept  the  vast 
ranges  of  life  and  could  not  rest  satisfied  in  details 
or  facts  until  he  saw  them  as  a  part  of  a  system  of 
things.  I  do  not  mean  that  he  was  a  theorist  or 
that  his  primary  interest  was  in  speculative  ques- 
tions. His  foremost  concern  was  life.  He  sought  to 
interpret  life.  His  constant  effort  was  to  bring 
every  doctrine  of  religion  or  of  politics  to  the  test 
of  life.  With  him  the  validity  of  every  truth  and 
the  sacredness  of  every  institution  depended  upon 
its  working  in  the  actual  experience  of  men. 

We  are  always  impressed  by  the  freedom  of  his 
thinking.  He  approaches  every  subject  with  open- 
mindedness,  in  fearless  and  reverent  quest  for  the 
truth.  While  his  convictions  were  positive  his  views 
were  never  congealed.  He  set  no  ecclesiastical  or 
conventional  bounds  to  his  thinking.  At  the  time 
of  the  beginning  of  his  ministry  religious  thought 
was  quite  confused  by  the  doctrine  of  evolution. 
Many  were  in  mental  panic.  A  materialistic  inter- 
pretation of  Darwin's  teaching,  the  philosophy  of 
Herbert  Spencer,  and  a  rigid  literalism  in  interpret- 
ing the  Bible  were  alike  hostile  to  a  rational  faith. 


176  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


Bashford,  unafraid,  set  out  to  master  the  literature 
on  the  subject  of  science  and  religion.  He  read 
widely  the  writings  of  Darwin  and  Huxley,  Wallace 
and  Spencer.  His  studies  in  philosophy  had  led  him 
to  the  insight  that  the  facts  of  life  presented  by 
physical  science  and  the  interpretation  of  those 
facts  by  philosophy  and  religion  were  two  entirely 
distinct  fields.  The  scientist  may  speak  with 
authority  in  the  field  of  physical  fact  or  phenomena, 
while  the  philosopher  and  the  theologian  must 
answer  the  question  as  to  the  meaning  of  the  facts 
for  life.  He  further  came  to  the  clear  insight  that 
the  theistic  interpretation  of  the  doctrines  of  phys- 
ical science  affords  a  rational  standing  place  for 
faith,  and  thus  evolution  may  be  made  an  ally 
instead  of  a  foe  of  the  Christian  religion. 

Books  like  Andrew  D.  White's  Conflict  of  Science 
and  Religion  and  Henry  Drummond's  Natural  Law 
in  the  Spiritual  World  indicate  the  trend  of  the 
religious  thinking  in  the  last  quarter  of  the  nine- 
teenth century.  Bashford  did  not  hesitate  to  accept 
the  findings  of  science  even  though  they  were  con- 
tradictory to  traditional  orthodoxy.  He  seized  the 
principle  of  evolution  and  through  it  discovered  a 
more  wonderful  God,  a  more  majestic  Christ  and 
a  more  dynamic  faith.  "He  harnessed  it  to  practical 
uses  and  made  common  men  feel  the  glory  of  the 
world  with  such  a  principle  in  it." 

Later,  when  the  question  of  higher  criticism 


THE  MAN  AND  HIS  MIND  177 


began  to  agitate  the  church  in  America,  Doctor 
Bashford  showed  the  same  intellectual  freedom  and 
stability.  Some  became  harebrained  radicals  dis- 
crediting the  divine  revelation  in  the  Scriptures; 
others  ranting  "defenders  of  the  faith,"  trying  by 
all  sorts  of  mental  jugglery  to  save  the  Bible  from 
its  enemies.  Accepting  the  fundamental  hypothesis 
of  modern  scholarship  concerning  the  literary  and 
historical  make-up  of  the  Scriptures,  Bashford 
found  in  the  Bible  an  ever  greatening  revelation  of 
God.  He  welcomed  every  discovery  of  the  scholars, 
firmly  believing  that  new  light  was  to  break  forth 
from  the  Word  of  God.  When  the  Revised  Version 
of  the  Scriptures  was  first  published  he  preached  a 
sermon  urging  its  general  use  in  the  interest  of  a 
fuller  understanding  of  the  Bible. 

Concerning  the  case  of  Professor  H.  G.  Mitchell 
of  Boston  University,  who  was  tried  for  heresy, 
Bishop  Bashford  wrote  in  1905:  "I  am  only  sure 
of  two  points:  in  the  first  place  I  do  not  want  to  see 
scholarship  throttled  and  the  results  of  reverent 
painstaking  study  despised  in  our  church  at  the 
cry  of  ignorant  bigots.  On  the  other  hand  the 
heresy  agitation  at  the  present  time  which  will 
serve  to  divert  the  church  from  evangelistic  effort 
at  home  and  from  the  evangelization  of  the  world 
will  be  exceedingly  unfortunate.  I  believe  with  a 
little  care  our  church  will  make  its  transition  from 
the  older  view  of  inspiration  to  the  newer  and  truer 


178  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


view  without  a  crisis.  Surely  such  a  result  would 
have  the  blessing  of  the  Lord."  When  informed  of 
Doctor  Borden  P.  Bowne's  acquittal  after  his  trial 
for  heresy  in  New  York,  Bashford  wrote:  "I  rejoice 
in  Doctor  Bowne's  acquittal.  The  Lord  rules." 

In  the  latter  part  of  his  administration  as  Pres- 
ident of  Ohio  Wesleyan  University  complaint  was 
made  by  some  Conference  visitors  concerning  the 
teaching  of  some  members  of  the  faculty  on  ques- 
tions of  science  and  religion.  He  advised  the 
teachers  under  criticism  to  exercise  care  in  the 
treatment  of  debatable  questions,  but  at  the  same 
time  informed  both  the  board  of  trustees  and  the 
faculty  in  unqualified  terms  that  he  wanted  it 
understood  that  the  university  stands  officially  for 
progress. 

The  trend  of  his  thinking  is  indicated  by  his 
reflections  after  reading  Professor  James'  Prag- 
matism recorded  in  his  notebook:  "Finished  Pro- 
fessor William  James'  Pragmatism.  The  contro- 
versy over  this  new  philosophy  is  a  tempest  in  a 
teapot.  What  is  true  is  obvious,  what  is  new  is 
largely  not  true.  James  takes  one  of  the  methods 
by  which  truth  is  tested — the  method  of  experiment 
— and  elevates  it  into  the  entire  process.  He  tries 
to  guard  the  method  by  making  what  we  think  is 
helpful  to  us  really  correspond  with  the  actual 
results,  or  unconsciously  makes  what  is  'workable' 
correspond  with  experience  of  the  race.  The  whole 


THE  MAN  AND  HIS  MIND  179 


subject  is  better  treated  by  Kant  in  his  Critique  of 
Pure  Reason.  To  say  that  whatever  is  of  value  to 
me  is  true  is  a  cheap  short  cut  to  truth  and  will 
permit  any  amount  of  self-indulgence  in  the  name 
of  philosophy.  No,  man  is  an  intelligent  being  in  a 
rational  universe.  This  is  the  presupposition  of  all 
science  and  all  philosophy.  Christian  truth  often 
transcends  but  it  never  contradicts  human  reason. 
I  will  not,  therefore,  dismiss  reason  at  the  gateway 
of  theology.  And  if  theologians  thrust  upon  me  a 
dogma  which  not  simply  transcends  but  which 
contradicts  reason,  then,  in  the  name  of  an  intel- 
ligible universe  and  of  the  God  from  whom  I  derive 
my  reason,  I  will  reject  it." 

Another  characteristic  of  Bashford's  mind  was 
poise  or  balance.  Every  subject,  every  interest  or 
duty  was  set  in  its  true  perspective.  However 
absorbing  any  local  interest  might  be,  however 
ardent  his  advocacy  of  any  cause,  it  was  always 
lifted  into  the  light  of  a  large  perspective.  He  had 
a  keen  sense  in  discriminating  between  vital  princi- 
ples and  nonessentials  in  faith  and  conduct.  His 
intellectual  sobriety  did  not  allow  him  to  raise  one 
doctrine,  however  important,  into  such  prominence 
as  to  make  it  the  all  of  the  Christian  faith.  The 
breadth  and  the  charity  of  his  teaching  is  a  constant 
rebuke  to  the  intolerant  religious  faddist  and  the 
doctrinal  propagandist.  And  yet  no  one  was  more 
positive  in  his  beliefs  than  was  Bashford.  He  com- 


180  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


bined  in  a  singular  way  intensity  in  belief  with 
breadth  and  tolerance.  Always  progressive  in  his 
thinking  and  at  times  even  radical,  his  radicalism 
was  combined  with  an  intense  evangelistic  spirit 
and  inflexible  moral  convictions.  In  his  religious 
passion  and  in  the  freedom  of  his  thinking  he  was 
like  Henry  Drummond,  but  with  a  deeper  philo- 
sophical insight.  The  premillennialists  have  claimed 
him  as  a  supporter  of  their  belief  in  the  early  second 
coming  of  Christ.  His  position  on  this  subject  is 
clearly  set  forth  in  a  letter  addressed  to  William  I. 
Lacy,  a  missionary  in  China: 

"The  New  Testament  clearly  teaches  that  Jesus 
is  coming  again.  All  of  our  churches  substantially 
hold  to  this  doctrine.  I  think  that  the  overwhelm- 
ing majority  say  that  it  is  not  known  when  Christ 
is  to  return.  On  that  question  we  refuse  to  have  an 
opinion  because  Christ  himself  says:  'Of  that  day 
and  hour  knoweth  no  man.'  All  of  us  should  rejoice 
exceedingly  if  Christ  were  to  come  at  once.  Cer- 
tainly in  the  sad  condition  which  confronts  the 
world  we  would  gladly  welcome  his  presence  any 
day.  I  am  not  clear  as  to  whether  the  second  com- 
ing of  Christ  is  postmillennial  or  premillennial,  and 
I  have  never  felt  like  making  the  slightest  predic- 
tion as  to  the  time  of  his  coming;  that  matter  is  in 
the  Father's  hands,  and  I  am  not  even  anxious 
over  it." 

He  believed  strongly  in  the  higher  spiritual 


THE  MAN  AND  HIS  MIND  181 


experiences  of  the  Christian  life,  commonly  called 
"sanctification"  or  "Christian  perfection."  But  he 
was  never  the  advocate  of  a  theory  or  the  contender 
for  doctrinal  terms.  "I  contend,"  he  writes  in 
God's  Missionary  Plan  for  the  World,  "that  some 
power  is  possible  for  us  all:  that  if  the  members  of 
the  Christian  Church  make  a  full  surrender  of  every 
known  sin;  if  they  stand  before  God  with  open 
minds  and  with  open  hearts,  ready  to  receive  the 
power  which  he  is  willing  to  bestow;  if  on  the 
reception  of  this  power  they  continue  to  walk  be- 
fore him  in  perfect  obedience,  not  exalting  them- 
selves above  their  brethren,  as  has  been  the  danger 
with  some;  and  if,  above  all,  they  continue  in 
perfect  obedience  day  by  day,  they  may  expect  a 
continuance  of  this  power.  The  experience  of 
sanctification  is  not  such  a  transformation  of  nature 
as  renders  one  impervious  to  temptation  and  makes 
further  transgression  impossible.  It  is  such  a  condi- 
tion of  continual  prayer,  of  openness  of  heart,  of 
modesty  of  spirit,  of  obedience  of  will,  and  of 
gratitude  for  divine  favors,  as  secures  the  constant 
inpouring  of  the  divine  life.  'It  is  no  longer  I  that 
live,  but  Christ  liveth  in  me:  and  that  life  which 
I  now  live  in  the  flesh  I  live  in  faith,  the  faith  which 
is  in  the  Son  of  God,  who  loved  me,  and  gave  him- 
self up  for  me.' 

There  was  one  truth  which  had  entered  so  fully 

1  Permission  The  Abingdon  Press. 


182         JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


into  his  personality  that  it  had  become  Bashford. 
That  truth  is  the  New  Testament  doctrine  of  love 
or  self-sacrifice,  the  supreme  law  of  life.  This  truth 
had  become  so  completely  identified  with  his  per- 
sonality that  if  you  had  cut  into  his  body,  the  blood 
of  this  truth  would  have  gushed  out.  This  was  the 
favorite  theme  of  his  preaching,  which  he  found 
illustrated  both  in  the  physical  processes  of  nature 
and  in  the  history  of  nations.  He  contended  that 
the  disappearance  of  the  useless  and  the  destructive 
forms  of  physical  life  and  the  perpetuation  of  the 
useful  in  fruit-bearing  plants  and  in  domestic 
animals,  and  the  development  of  the  highest  ex- 
pression of  human  life  in  mother  love,  and  the 
recognition  of  the  obligation  to  serve  unselfishly 
in  the  larger  social  groups  all  point  toward  the 
Christian  law  of  love  as  the  ultimate  law  of  all 
higher  living.  In  the  Christian  principle  of  self- 
sacrifice  he  finds  both  the  rule  for  personal  conduct 
and  the  philosophy  of  history.  The  lurid  revela- 
tions of  the  World  War  have  led  publicists, 
economists,  and  statesmen  to  declare  that  the  only 
hope  for  rebuilding  the  world  in  a  stable  order  of 
peace  and  justice  is  in  the  acceptance  by  individ- 
uals, by  social  groups,  and  by  nations  of  the  princi- 
ples of  conduct  given  by  the  Man  of  Galilee.  For 
nearly  forty  years  the  message  which  Bashford 
proclaimed  by  voice  and  pen  was :  Selfishness  is  the 
curse  of  the  world;  love  is  the  supreme  law  of  life. 


CHAPTER  X 


THE  MAN  AND  HIS  CHARACTER 

To  have  seen  James  W.  Bashford  was  to  remem- 
ber him  always.  His  tall  figure,  with  shoulders 
slightly  stooping,  and  a  kind  of  loping  walk,  his 
light  colored  hair  falling  carelessly  over  a  high  fore- 
head, his  keen  but  kindly  blue  eyes,  a  face  always 
radiant  with  cheerfulness,  but  lighting  up  won- 
drously  with  the  emotions  of  his  soul,  his  laughter 
a  kind  of  boyish  chuckle,  exploding  often  in  con- 
tagious outbursts  of  merriment;  listening  always 
with  an  eager  intentness;  speaking  with  the  most 
accurate  enunciation  but  with  torrent-like  rapid- 
ity; careful  in  dress  but  always  unconscious  of  his 
appearance, — these  were  the  marks  by  which  we 
knew  him.  No  man  in  his  character  was  ever  truer 
to  his  appearance  than  James  W.  Bashford.  He 
looked  like  a  great  man.  There  was  a  true  nobility 
in  his  manner.  He  was  direct  both  in  thought  and 
in  speech.  In  voice  and  in  manner  he  was  trans- 
parently sincere.  His  concentration  of  mind  was 
intense.  Whether  listening  or  speaking,  whether  at 
work  or  at  play  he  gave  himself  utterly.  He  com- 
bined in  a  singular  way  buoyancy  of  spirit  and 
calm  judgment;  boyish  frankness  and  unconscious 
dignity.  He  was  fully  conscious  of  his  power,  yet 
183 


184         JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


as  humble  as  a  child.  There  was  something 
magnetic  about  his  personality  that  drew  men  to 
him  irresistibly.  Sometimes  he  convinced  you  not 
so  much  by  the  cogency  of  his  reasoning  as  by  the 
purity  and  energy  of  his  spirit. 

There  is  perhaps  no  more  reliable  way  of  ap- 
praising the  character  of  a  man  than  by  the 
reactions  of  others  toward  him.  Judged  by  this 
test  Bashford  was  a  great  man.  His  influence  over 
other  men  was  always  greatening.  As  one  who  knew 
him  intimately  writes:  "Any  company  that  he 
touched  felt  the  appeal  of  his  unconscious  dignity 
and  unselfish  spirit  and  stood  up  a  little  taller  and 
straighter." 

One  of  the  notable  things  in  Bashford's  per- 
sonality was  the  appeal  which  he  made  to  every- 
body. The  common  people  heard  him  gladly.  He 
was  also  the  trusted  counselor  of  rulers  and 
scholars.  An  easy  peer  in  any  company  of  the 
great  ones  of  the  earth  and  yet  always  the  friend 
of  children  and  the  lowly.  Deeply  devout  as  he 
was,  his  goodness  was  always  winsome  to  men  of 
the  world.  His  interest  embraced  everything  that 
was  human.  Therefore  men  of  every  kind  and  class 
were  drawn  to  him.  He  was  a  kind  of  universal 
favorite  because  he  was  such  a  genuine  lover  of 
everything  human. 

One  of  his  most  striking  characteristics  was  the 
buoyancy  of  his  spirit  or  the  resilience  of  his  nature. 


MAN  AND  HIS  CHARACTER  185 


When  I  first  knew  him  as  a  college  president  his 
whole  being  seemed  vibrant  with  life.  The  life 
abundant  within  was  expressing  itself  in  a  con- 
tagious enthusiasm  in  his  work,  in  a  genial  humor 
in  difficult  situations,  in  a  cheerfulness  that  was 
radiant  in  his  face,  in  a  hopefulness  that  knew  no 
measure,  and  in  strength  to  do  and  to  endure  that 
is  nothing  less  than  incredible.  Who  ever  saw  him 
depressed  or  discouraged?  If  he  was  attempting 
what  others  called  a  hopeless  task  in  church  or  in 
college  finance,  he  would  confidently  affirm  his 
faith  and  go  laughing  to  the  job.  He  was  threatened 
with  shipwreck  once  on  the  Yangtse.  His  com- 
panion was  pacing  the  deck  anxiously  and  Bashford 
said:  "God  is  keeping  watch  above  his  own.  Why 
should  we  both  stay  awake?"  He  retired  and  slept 
like  a  child.  In  the  darkest  days  of  the  Revolution 
in  China  he  was  calm  and  cheerful  as  he  reaffirmed 
his  faith  in  the  great  future  of  the  Chinese  nation. 
When  he  faced  difficulties  in  administering  the 
churches  in  Central  China  that  threatened  their 
very  existence  he  was  undaunted.  For  more  than 
twenty  years  he  fought  disease,  suffering  in  later 
life  severe  pain,  tormented  by  a  racking  cough, 
which  one  of  his  friends  facetiously  pronounced 
"one  of  his  distinctive  charms."  And  yet  he  was 
always  abounding  in  good  cheer  and  courage,  in  a 
kindling  enthusiasm  and  untiring  energy. 

He  had  a  quaint  sense  of  humor,  but  he  was 


186  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


little  given  to  fun  making.  He  told  stories  with  un- 
affected delight.  But  no  one  ever  heard  from  his 
lips  pleasantry  that  left  either  a  sting  or  a  stain. 
On  one  of  his  laborious  trips  on  the  Yangtse  river 
he  writes  in  his  Journal:  "Our  coolies  are  asleep  in 
the  most  uncomfortable  places — some  on  bare 
boards,  others  in  the  bottom  of  the  boat,  but  all 
snoring  beautifully.  Thank  God  I  can  understand 
a  Chinaman  for  the  first  time!" 

Again  when  preparing  for  a  long  inland  journey 
in  China  he  was  loaded  down  with  silver  he  re- 
called a  conversation  between  William  J.  Bryan 
and  a  crazy  man  in  an  insane  asylum.  The  visitor 
asked  the  inmate  why  he  was  in  the  asylum.  The 
patient  replied:  "For  discussing  truth  in  advance 
of  the  world."  He  explained  that  he  was  another 
incarnation  of  the  spirit  of  Jesus,  but  the  world  had 
not  yet  recognized  his  claims,  hence  his  confine- 
ment. But  at  once  the  patient  asked  Mr.  Bryan 
why  he  was  there.  "For  exactly  the  same  reason," 
said  Mr.  Bryan,  "for  discussing  truth  in  advance 
of  the  race."  "And  what  truth  have  you  dis- 
covered?" was  the  quick  reply.  "The  doctrine  of 
sixteen  to  one,"  replied  the  statesman.  "Oh,"  said 
the  lunatic,  a  look  of  disgust  passing  over  his  face, 
"you  are  not  crazy;  you  are  simply  a  born  idiot." 

One  of  his  fellow  travelers  on  a  tedious  house 
boat  trip  reports  they  were  delayed  for  several 
hours  by  a  quarrel  among  the  coolies.  The  weather 


MAN  AND  HIS  CHARACTER  187 


was  cold  and  the  delay  exasperating.  When  the 
party  sat  down  to  their  frugal  meal,  Bashford 
offered  thanks  and  then  added:  "From  the  way 
you  looked,  I  did  not  dare  call  upon  any  of  you  to 
give  thanks." 

When  Bashford  was  a  graduate  student  in 
Boston  he  sought  out  a  well-known  teacher  of 
music  for  a  course  of  instruction.  In  his  first  lesson 
the  new  pupil  was  asked  to  sing  a  simple  selection. 
When  he  had  performed,  the  master  said:  "Mr. 
Bashford,  have  you  any  other  calling  besides  music 
to  which  you  are  looking  forward?"  To  which  he 
replied  rather  resentfully:  "Yes,  sir,  I  have."  The 
musician's  prompt  rejoinder  was:  "I  advise  you 
then  to  follow  the  other  calling." 

Every  one  who  has  heard  Bishop  Bashford  try  to 
sing  will  appreciate  the  serious  humor  of  this  com- 
ment: "The  Chinese  are  the  worst  singers  I  ever 
listened  to.  I  sometimes  think  that  with  notable 
exceptions  strong  characters  do  not  make  good 
singers.  But  the  Germans  and  the  English  have 
learned  to  sing  very  well;  and  so  will  the  Chinese 
in  time — or  in  eternity." 

Riding  in  a  jinrikisha  one  day  in  Nanking  he 
was  accosted  by  a  professional  beggar.  Instead  of 
being  annoyed  or  ignoring  the  beggar  he  politely 
asked  the  beggar  for  a  gift.  The  beggar  was  ready 
for  the  humor  of  the  situation  and  followed  the 
bishop  and  gave  him  several  coppers. 


188  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


Another  marked  trait  in  Bashford's  character 
was  his  ambition  to  excel.  As  a  farm  laborer  in  his 
youth  he  was  unwilling  to  be  outdone.  As  a  college 
student,  he  determined  to  take  high  rank  and  won 
first  honors  in  his  class.  When  he  entered  the 
ministry  he  set  out  to  be  a  great  preacher.  Many  of 
his  sermons  and  addresses  were  rewritten  many 
times  because  of  his  desire  to  put  upon  everything 
he  did  the  imprint  of  his  best  work.  He  was  not 
satisfied  with  the  mediocre  either  in  attainment  or 
achievement.  He  loved  to  excel  whether  in  a  college 
debate,  in  preaching,  or  in  a  game  of  tennis.  And 
yet  his  ambition  was  never  selfish.  No  one  was 
freer  from  a  craving  for  place  and  power  for  selfish 
uses  than  was  Bishop  Bashford.  When  he  went  to 
the  General  Conference  in  Los  Angeles,  where  he 
was  elected  Bishop  of  the  Methodist  Episcopal 
Church,  after  receiving  many  letters  and  hearing 
from  friends  frequent  mention  of  his  probable 
election,  he  wrote  in  his  notebook  as  follows:  "If 
there  is  a  deep,  strong  desire  for  me  as  a  bishop 
similar  to  the  desire  of  the  Auburndale  church  for 
me  as  pastor  or  of  the  Ohio  Wesleyan  University 
trustees  for  me  as  president,  I  will  serve.  But  if  I 
can  simply  be  elected  as  over  against  other  com- 
petitors and  can  discover  no  deep  wish  for  me  in 
that  office,  I  shall  remain  where  I  am."  This 
reveals  the  fine  quality  of  his  ambition.  With  him 
ambition  was  always  passing  into  aspiration  for 


MAN  AND  HIS  CHARACTER  189 


high  attainment  and  worthy  achievement.  He 
wrote  in  his  Journal  August  29,  1915:  "I  make 
Napoleon  a  sort  of  intellectual  test  of  every  man's 
spirit.  The  man  of  Christian  spirit  is  instinctively 
repelled  by  Napoleon;  the  worldling  instinctively 
approves  him."  It  was  his  ambition  for  office  and 
public  leadership  in  his  early  life  which  brought 
back  again  and  again  the  temptation  to  enter  the 
law  instead  of  the  ministry. 

His  passion  to  excel  was  fully  matched  by 
another  conspicuous  quality,  energy  in  work.  In 
many  of  his  early  student  notebooks  Bashford  had 
inscribed  this  legend  which  became  the  working 
motto  of  his  life,  "Labor  omnia  vincit."  It  may  be 
truly  said  of  Bashford  as  Emerson  said  of  Lincoln : 
"This  man  was  sound  to  the  core,  cheerful,  per- 
sistent, all  right  for  labor,  and  liked  nothing  so 
well."  To  begin  with  he  had  an  amazing  capacity 
for  work.  Few  men  can  do  several  different  things 
with  success  in  any  of  them.  But  Bashford 
possessed  a  high  order  of  mental  ability  and  early 
acquired  the  habit  of  intense  concentration.  He 
was  utterly  absorbed  in  the  task  of  the  hour.  He 
lived  and  moved  and  had  his  being  in  what  he  was 
doing.  For  the  time  he  seemed  to  have,  and  actually 
had  only  one  interest.  He  often  said  that  one  of 
the  most  valuable  lessons  of  his  college  days  was 
learning  how  to  use  all  his  time.  He  was  the  most 
jealous  man  of  every  fragment  of  time  I  have  ever 


190  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


known.  A  student  in  college  was  invited  to  his 
home  to  dine  with  him.  Upon  arrival  Doctor 
Bashford  said  to  his  guest:  "Now  if  you  do  not 
mind,  come  to  my  room  and  we  will  talk  while  I 
am  shaving."  The  simple  incident  made  upon  the 
student  a  great  impression  as  to  the  value  which 
Bashford  put  upon  every  minute  of  time.  I  have 
never  known  a  man  to  work  so  incessantly  as 
Bashford  worked.  When  traveling  he  always  car- 
ried a  large  case  of  books.  When  traveling  by 
chair,  or  river  house  boats,  on  train  or  shipboard,  in 
Chinese  inns  by  lantern  light — everywhere  every 
hour  of  time  was  utilized.  His  energy  in  work  was 
an  expression  of  his  mental  eagerness  in  search  for 
knowledge.  When  we  remember  that  he  was  never 
in  perfect  health  during  the  last  fifteen  years  of  his 
life,  and  much  of  the  time  was  in  great  physical 
pain,  and  was  traveling  almost  continuously,  often 
amidst  severe  hardships,  the  variety  and  magnitude 
of  his  work  is  a  marvel. 

A  traveling  companion  in  China  relates  a  little 
incident  which  reveals  the  great  tenderness  of  the 
Bishop.  "We  came  to  where  there  was  a  colony  of 
small  black  ants  carrying  decayed  wood  from  a  tree 
to  their  nest  in  the  ground  beside  the  brick  wall. 
He  stopped  to  watch  them  and  noticed  one  that 
had  been  injured  by  losing  a  leg  or  two.  It  was 
carrying  a  large  piece  of  wood,  and  immediately  he 
tore  a  leaf  from  a  tablet  and  stooping  down  took 


MAN  AND  HIS  CHARACTER  191 


the  little  ant  upon  it  with  its  burden  and  carried 
it  to  the  hole  beside  the  wall  and  shook  it  off.  I 
spoke  to  him  as  to  it  and  he  replied,  Tt  is  one  of 
God's  creatures,  just  as  I  am.  Why  should  I  not 
help  it  along?  Some  day  I  may  meet  that  little 
fellow  again.  At  any  rate,  I  would  want  some  larger 
one  of  God's  creatures  to  help  me  if  I  was  in  that 
fix.'  "  This  helps  us  to  know  how  big  he  was — so 
big,  indeed,  that  like  the  Father  a  sparrow  cannot 
fall  to  the  ground  without  his  notice. 

Another  fellow  traveler  describes  his  considera- 
tion for  his  carriers  and  boatmen.  Knowing  the 
fondness  of  the  Chinese  laborers  for  tin  cans,  after 
the  roadside  meal,  he  would  gather  up  the  empty 
cans  and  present  them  to  the  men  with  as  much 
graciousness  as  if  he  were  giving  a  college  diploma. 
He  always  carried  when  traveling  in  the  country 
peanuts  and  oranges  which  he  gave  liberally  to  his 
chairmen. 

The  following  incident  related  by  one  of  the 
missionaries  of  the  Woman's  Foreign  Missionary 
Society  in  Wuhu,  China,  reveals  the  inmost  spirit 
of  Bishop  Bashford.  At  two  o'clock  in  the  morning 
the  house  in  which  the  Bishop  was  a  guest  was 
roused  by  the  gateman ,  who  announced  the  arrival 
of  a  foreigner  who  could  not  speak  Chinese.  Upon 
investigation,  the  untimely  caller  was  found  to  be 
a  man  in  a  drunken  stupor  lying  on  the  doorstep. 
When  the  disturbance  was  first  made,  Bishop  Bash- 


192  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


ford  was  found,  not  quietly  resting,  but  pacing  the 
floor  in  thought  on  the  problems  of  the  work  in 
Wuhu.  On  hearing  of  the  disabled  guest,  he  dressed 
and  went  down  to  see  what  could  be  done.  Seeing 
the  man's  condition,  he  asked  that  a  room  be  pre- 
pared for  him  and  then,  with  the  tenderness  of  a 
father  toward  a  sleeping  child,  removed  the  man's 
shoes,  tucked  him  in  bed,  saying,  "Have  a  good 
rest."  The  Bishop  then  returned  to  his  own  room 
to  continue  his  vigil. 

If  Bashford  had  one  trait  by  which  all  the  world 
knew  him  it  was  unselfishness.  A  lifelong  friend 
once  said,  "Bashford  was  the  most  self-giving  man 
I  ever  knew."  His  unselfishness  was  not  of  a 
negative  sort,  which  consists  chiefly  in  the  absence 
of  self-seeking.  It  was  rather  the  devotion  of  all  his 
powers  to  helping  other  people  and  to  the  service 
of  great  causes.  This  quality  showed  itself  in  little 
things  in  his  home.  His  consideration  for  the  health 
and  happiness  of  his  wife  was  always  beautifully 
tender.  From  the  beginning  of  his  public  career,  he 
showed  a  noble  indifference  to  purely  personal 
considerations  in  salary  and  place.  Immediately 
after  his  graduation  from  the  University  of  Wis- 
consin he  had  three  opportunities  for  employment, 
one  as  private  secretary  to  Governor  Taylor  of  the 
State  of  Wisconsin,  the  second  as  pastor  of  a  large 
church,  the  third  as  instructor  in  Greek  in  the 
university  at  a  salary  less  than  half  the  amount  of 


MAN  AND  HIS  CHARACTER  193 


either  of  the  other  positions.  He  accepted  the 
latter  offer,  believing  that  it  would  afford  the  best 
preparation  for  his  future  work  as  a  Christian 
minister.  When  offered  his  choice  of  two  churches 
as  a  student  pastor  in  Boston,  he  chose  the  more 
difficult  field  at  less  salary,  believing  that  his 
services  were  more  needed  in  the  poorer  church. 
After  his  graduation  from  Boston  University  School 
of  Theology,  he  was  invited  by  Bishop  Randolph 
S.  Foster  to  take  the  pastorate  of  a  large  church  in 
Minneapolis.  He  declined  the  invitation,  believing 
that  he  ought  to  continue  as  pastor  of  the  First 
Methodist  Episcopal  Church,  Jamaica  Plain,  until 
the  church  had  paid  the  burdensome  debt  under 
which  it  was  struggling.  The  uppermost  con- 
sideration in  his  mind  whenever  any  position  was 
offered  was :  where  can  I  render  the  largest  service? 
When  elected  a  bishop  of  the  Methodist  Church, 
he  was  eager  to  go  to  China  because  he  believed 
there  was  the  greatest  need  of  his  work. 

His  uncalculating  self-giving  was  beautifully 
illustrated  in  his  relations  both  to  the  students  and 
to  the  professors  during  his  presidency  of  Ohio 
Wesleyan  University.  Many  a  poor  student  owes 
his  chance  for  a  college  education  to  President 
Bashford's  friendly  help.  His  unselfishness  showed 
itself  in  his  generous  attitude  toward  his  colleagues 
or  his  colaborers  in  any  field.  He  was  never  fault- 
finding.    He  saw  the  excellencies  in  his  fellow 


194  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


workers  and  was  always  trying  to  advance  them, 
even  at  times  to  his  own  detriment.  When  his 
friends  first  proposed  his  election  as  bishop,  he 
urged  them  not  to  vote  for  him  but  to  support  his 
predecessor,  Dr.  Charles  H.  Payne.  When  he  was 
elected  bishop  it  was  wholly  without  any  effort 
on  his  own  part.  Indeed,  there  is  no  evidence  in  his 
long  career  in  public  service  of  his  ever  deliberately 
seeking  to  promote  his  own  interest.  His  life  as  a 
minister  of  the  gospel  was  utterly  free  from  the 
disgusting  place  seeking  which  has  burned  out  the 
effectiveness  of  many  another.  In  every  field  of 
labor  to  which  he  went  he  bore  the  credentials  of 
his  Master:  "I  am  among  you  as  he  that  serveth." 

He  believed  that  it  was  unworthy  of  a  minister 
to  seek  any  position.  True,  he  at  one  time  wanted 
to  be  the  editor  of  Zion's  Herald,  but  he  never 
became  a  candidate  for  any  office.  Speaking  of 
"combinations"  of  influence  in  the  interest  of  per- 
sonal advancement,  he  says:  "Technically,  such 
combinations  are  not  regarded  as  bribery  in  either 
state  or  church,  but  I  do  not  think  the  Lord  on  the 
judgment  day  will  discriminate  between  combina- 
tions to  divide  the  offices  and  combinations  to 
divide  the  spoils  of  office."  He  blazed  forth  in 
withering  rebuke  of  men  who  would  place  personal 
ambitions  before  their  devotion  to  the  progress  of 
the  church.  "In  view  of  the  glorious  possibilities 
before  our  church  upon  the  one  hand  and  the 


MAN  AND  HIS  CHARACTER  195 


dangerous  symptoms  manifesting  themselves  upon 
the  other,  ought  we  not  to  doom  any  man  who 
favors  or  encourages  or  tolerates  a  coterie  of  fol- 
lowers working  for  his  personal  advancement?" 
These  strong  words  uttered  in  an  address  before 
the  New  York  Methodist  Social  Union  in  the  spring 
of  1900  on  "Office  Seeking  in  Methodism"  were  his 
lifelong  protest  against  all  ambitious  self-seeking. 

A  conspicuous  instance  of  his  unselfish  devotion 
was  in  his  generous  giving.  During  his  presidency 
of  Ohio  Wesleyan  University  he  lived  on  less  than 
half  his  salary  and  gave  away  the  balance.  He  and 
Mrs.  Bashford  lived  in  simplicity  in  order  that  they 
might  be  able  to  give  to  worthy  causes.  His  salary 
as  bishop  was  often  mortgaged  far  in  advance  in 
order  that  he  might  help  others.  At  the  close  of  his 
life,  Bishop  and  Mrs.  Bashford  had  given  more 
than  twenty-five  thousand  dollars  to  Ohio  Wes- 
leyan University,  and  thousands  more  to  other 
schools  and  Christian  enterprises.  His  life  was  a 
striking  example  of  the  favorite  theme  of  all  his 
preaching — the  Christian  principle  of  self-sacrifice 
or,  The  Law  of  Love  the  Supreme  Law  of  Life.  The 
secret  of  his  great  influence  over  men  lies  not  in  his 
intellectual  ability,  in  the  buoyancy  of  his  spirit 
and  the  charm  of  his  personality,  neither  is  it  to  be 
found  in  his  energy  in  work  and  his  breadth  of 
human  interests,  but  rather  in  the  purity  of  his 
character  and  in  the  unselfishness  of  his  devotion. 


196  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


His  highest  title  to  greatness  was  in  his  own  un- 
selfish manhood. 

Matthew  Arnold's  words  concerning  his  father, 
the  Master  of  Rugby,  are  none  the  less  true  of 
Bashford : 

"But  thou  wouldst  not  alone 
Be  saved,  my  father!  Alone 
Conquer  and  come  to  thy  goal, 
Leaving  the  rest  in  the  wild 

If  in  the  paths  of  the  world 
Stones  might  have  wounded  thy  feet, 
Toil  or  dejection  have  tried 
Thy  spirit — of  that  we  saw 
Nothing — to  us  thou  wast  still 
Cheerful  and  helpful  and  firm! 
Therefore  to  thee  it  was  given 
Many  to  save  with  thyself ; 
And  at  the  end  of  thy  day, 
O  faithful  shepherd!  to  come 
Bringing  thy  sheep  in  thy  hand." 

Bishop  Bashford's  most  conspicuous  trait  of 
character  was  his  religiousness.  He  literally  lived 
by  faith.  Faith  in  God  was  the  starting  place  of  all 
his  thinking  on  the  problems  of  personal  duty, 
suffering,  the  intellectual  life,  social  and  national 
relationships.  Whether  in  conversation  or  in  public 
address  you  felt  the  spell  of  one  to  whom  the  sense 
of  God  was  the  deepest  reality.  Out  of  the  fullness 
of  his  own  life  of  fellowship  with  the  divine  Pres- 


MAN  AND  HIS  CHARACTER  197 


ence  he  seemed  to  be  saying  to  his  fellow  men, 
"Have  faith  in  God."  He  saw  providences  of  God 
in  what  were  to  the  unbelieving  only  meaningless 
events.  The  charm  of  his  religious  life  was  the 
simplicity  and  naturalness  of  his  faith.  His  faith 
was  at  the  same  time  the  secret  of  his  power. 
Again  and  again  I  have  heard  him  say  in  the 
presence  of  a  task  that  seemed  impossible,  "All 
things  are  possible  to  him  that  believeth." 

It  was  this  living  faith  in  God  that  inspired  his 
boundless  optimism.  Sometimes  men  thought  he 
was  more  optimistic  than  the  facts  would  warrant. 
He  was.  But  he  reckoned  on  the  facts  plus  God. 
And  yet  there  was  nothing  fanatical  or  unhealthy 
in  his  faith.  Frequently  he  would  say,  "We  must 
work  as  if  everything  depended  upon  our  effort, 
and  we  must  trust  in  God's  help  as  if  we  could  do 
nothing  at  all."  While  he  was  not  blind  to  the 
shortcomings  of  men  or  given  to  overestimating 
their  abilities,  he  believed  so  genuinely  in  the  good 
in  men  that  he  called  forth  their  best.  He  built 
churches,  he  inspired  men  to  give  large  sums  of 
money  for  Christian  enterprises;  he  led  men  to 
support  great  public  causes  because  of  his  invincible 
faith  in  the  rule  of  God  on  the  earth. 

In  a  letter  to  a  friend  in  China  he  wrote:  "The 
great  conquest  which  God  has  put  us  upon  this 
earth  to  accomplish  is  not,  after  all,  simply  the 
winning  of  China  for  Christianity;  it  is  first  and 


198         JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


above  all  the  complete  conquest  of  our  own  souls 
by  Christ." 

He  was  once  asked:  "What  is  the  greatest  need 
of  China?"  Instantly  he  replied :  "China's  greatest 
need  is  a  sheer  demonstration  of  personal  good- 
ness." That  was  an  expression  of  the  deepest  im- 
pulse of  his  life.  He  was  eager  for  knowledge;  but 
his  passion  for  Christlikeness  was  stronger  than  the 
passion  of  the  scholar.  He  was  ambitious  to  excel ; 
but  he  subordinated  all  ambitions  for  achievement 
to  seeking  for  godliness.  There  was  a  naturalness 
and  a  simplicity  in  his  religion  which  made  his 
piety  one  of  the  most  attractive  features  of  his 
personality.  He  was  utterly  free  from  cant.  He 
used  no  pious  tones  or  unctuous  manners.  His 
public  prayers  were  free  from  formality,  direct 
and  inspiring.  Whenever  he  prayed  he  seemed  to 
be  talking  with  God. 

The  following  prayer  offered  at  an  Annual  Con- 
ference is  typical:  "O  Lord  God  of  might  and  of 
love,  bless  the  ministers  of  our  church,  our  teachers, 
district  superintendents,  our  bishops  and  editors. 
Forgive  us  all  our  outward  and  inward  sins  and 
cleanse  us  from  all  unrighteousness  and  fill  us  with 
thy  Holy  Spirit.  May  we  have  the  prophetic  spirit 
and  the  gift  of  leadership.  To  this  end  fill  us  with 
thy  truth  daily.  May  we  be  students  of  thy  word, 
of  thy  works  and  of  thy  ways.  Above  all  may  we 
be  obedient  to  the  light  as  thou  shalt  give  us  to  see 


MAN  AND  HIS  CHARACTER  199 


the  light.  Help  us  by  thy  infinite  power  to  close 
the  chasm  between  our  ideals  and  our  daily  lives. 
By  sound  minds  and  kindly  lives  and  gracious 
manners  may  we  possess  the  confidence  and  love 
of  our  people  and  lead  them  to  follow  us  as  we 
follow  Christ.  Bless  our  wives  and  may  we  all  be 
laborers  together  with  thee  in  our  homes  and  in 
our  church.  Bless  our  children  and  may  they  grow 
up  in  the  nurture  and  the  love  of  God.  O  Lord  our 
God !  give  us  the  spirit  of  Jesus  our  Lord.  May  we 
be  consumed  by  the  passion  for  holiness  and  for 
souls;  and  may  we  see  the  fruit  of  our  labor  in 
large  and  constant  revivals  of  religion,  growth  of 
churches  in  the  graces  of  the  Holy  Spirit  and  in  the 
advancement  of  civic  righteousness  and  of  real 
reform." 

He  spoke  of  the  things  of  religion  with  natural- 
ness, with  clear  insight,  and  with  such  compelling 
enthusiasm  as  to  make  one  feel  that  to  him  the 
things  of  the  spirit  are  the  most  vital  interests  of 
life.  He  literally  lived  by  faith.  His  habit  of  prayer 
reminds  us  of  the  prayer  life  of  the  Master.  Every 
year  he  read  the  Bible  through,  marking  passages 
which  met  the  need  of  the  time.  His  Journal  reveals 
the  depth  and  the  sanity  of  his  devotion  and  his 
constant  dependence  upon  the  Bible  for  spiritual 
food.  January  26,  1905,  on  the  Yangtse  River  he 
writes  in  his  notes:  "Deuteronomy  seems  to  me 
more  and  more  in  accord  with  the  highest  ethics 


200  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


and  latest  science  in  its  insistence  upon  obedience." 
Bishop  Bashford's  hajbit  of  daily  Bible  reading  is 
illuminating.  He  read  the  Bible  with  the  most 
reverent  thoughtfulness.  To  him  the  Book  was 
never  a  fetish  on  the  one  hand,  nor  on  the  other  a 
mere  textbook  of  religion.  The  Scriptures  were  the 
channel  of  his  communion  with  God,  the  food  upon 
which  his  inner  life  fed.  The  margins  of  his  Bibles 
were  covered  with  notes  which  reveal  the  yearning 
search  which  he  was  making  continually  for 
spiritual  light  and  leading.  He  marked  certain 
passages  which  were  associated  with  important 
occasions  or  unusual  experiences  in  his  life. 

After  reading  the  Bible  through  for  1905,  his 
notebook  entry  is:  "Finished  reading  through  the 
Bible  for  1905.  I  feel  the  folly  of  the  contention  of 
the  critics.  The  Bible  has  mistakes  and  is  partly, 
indeed  wholly,  human,  as  to  the  agency  through 
which  it  comes  to  us,  and  bears  over  and  over  again 
the  marks  of  its  human  agents.  On  the  other  hand, 
its  divine  power  manifests  itself  in  the  life  of  each 
one  who  will  obey  it.  The  Book  never  meant  so 
much  to  me  as  it  does  to-day."  Later  in  the  year 
when  threatened  with  failure  of  health,  he  makes 
this  note:  "If  I  can  help  China  or  America  more  by 
suffering  and  dying  than  by  working,  all  right; 
I  am  absolutely  sure  that  we  are  all  in  the  Father's 
hands."  After  reading  Isaiah  49,  he  wrote:  "It 
appeals  to  me  and  finds  me  at  the  depth  of  my 


MAN  AND  HIS  CHARACTER  201 


being.  I  believe  it  is  possible  for  me  to  realize  these 
promises  if  I  walk  in  the  way  of  obedience.  I  will 
do  so  with  God's  help."  July  1,  1907,  he  writes: 
"My  faith  is  greatly  strengthened  by  2  Chronicles, 
chapter  29." 

From  April,  1907,  to  March  1,  1908,  after  travel- 
ing 11,000  miles  by  railroads,  steamboats,  horse- 
back, chairs,  and  on  foot,  he  never  complained  of 
the  hardships,  but  writes:  "Upon  the  whole  I  feel 
like  singing  the  doxology  over  and  over  again  for 
Jennie's  health,  for  the  privilege  of  putting  in 
another  year's  work  in  China.  Bless  the  Lord, 
O  my  soul."  March  9,  1909,  at  Chefoo  he  writes  in 
his  Journal:  "In  these  trips  alone  I  feel  as  if  God 
were  shutting  me  up  with  himself  as  Moses  and 
Paul  and  John  were  isolated  for  a  time.  I  hope  it  is 
for  an  equally  good  purpose.  Am  realizing  his 
presence  more  and  more  and  can  still  write,  'Kept 
by  the  power  of  God.'  "  After  experiencing  his 
sixth  typhoon,  he  wrote:  "When  in  these  storms 
at  sea,  I  sometimes  think  I  will  give  up  residence 
in  China  as  soon  as  practicable,  but  someone 
must  encounter  these  dangers  and  discomforts. 
Perhaps  the  Lord  apprehended  me  for  this 
service." 

April  15,  1909,  Formosa  Channel:  "A  heavy 
northeast  wind  is  blowing  and  the  high  waves  are 
breaking  over  our  boat  which  is  old  and  small,  and 
the  captain  seems  weary.  'The  Lord  is  my  shep- 


202  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


herd;  I  shall  not  want.'  "  After  reading  1  Corin- 
thians 10.  13:  "Am  greatly  encouraged  by  this 
promise.  Certainly  one  ought  always  to  exercise 
perfect  self-mastery.  This  I  am  unable  to  do  in  my 
own  strength.  Lust,  egotism,  and  temper  get  the 
upper  hand  of  me  at  least  in  thought  and  some- 
times in  act.  Hence  the  need  and  joy  of  being  kept 
by  the  Spirit.  For  the  first  twenty -five  years  of  my 
life  my  aspiration  was  so  to  live  that  men  might 
truly  write  on  my  headstone,  'Blessed  are  the  pure 
in  heart:  for  they  shall  see  God.'  For  the  last 
fifteen  years,  so  to  live  that  I  might  be  able  to  say 
in  some  measure  at  least,  'Father,  I  have  finished 
the  work  thou  gavest  me  to  do.'  I  have  not  realized 
either  of  these  ideals.  People  can  only  say  of  me: 
'A  sinner  saved  by  grace.'" 

Reviewing  the  struggle  to  raise  $100,000  for 
immediate  advance,  he  writes:  "I  am  more  and 
more  impressed  that  it  was  wholly  a  victory  of 
faith."  At  the  same  time  no  one  was  more  energetic 
in  work  and  thoughtful  in  planning  for  the  great 
enterprises  than  he.  In  1912  he  was  facing  the 
problem  of  continuing  his  work  in  China  or  return- 
ing to  America.  He  concludes:  "In  the  confusion 
and  absorption  of  men  to-day  in  the  things  of  the 
world  I  can  do  most  for  the  Kingdom  by  offering 
my  life  for  a  great  nation  like  the  Chinese  and 
maintaining  this  offering  to  the  last.  It  is  lonely 
on  the  Yangtse,  but  the  Yangtse,  not  the  Hudson, 


MAN  AND  HIS  CHARACTER  203 


is  the  seat  of  power."  "Kept  by  the  power  of 
God,"  he  writes  over  and  over  again  in  his  daily 
Journal. 

After  finishing  reading  the  Bible  through  in  1908: 
"The  Bible  is  far  the  greatest  means  of  keeping  me 
in  touch  with  God  to  be  found.  It  needs  no  other 
vindication."  The  spirit  of  his  life  is  revealed  by 
the  inscription  which  he  had  carved  on  the  corner 
stone  of  the  University  Hall  at  Ohio  Wesleyan: 
"Christ  the  Chief  Corner  Stone." 

One  who  knew  him  closely  writes,  "I  never  knew 
anything  unworthy  in  him.  He  walked  with  Christ 
in  white  even  and  while  he  was  here  on  the  dusty 
highways  of  the  world." 

The  campaign  to  raise  a  centenary  fund  of 
$105,000,000  commemorating  the  founding  of  the 
Missionary  Society  of  the  Methodist  Episcopal 
Church  had  just  begun.  Many  were  pessimistic 
concerning  its  outcome.  Bashford  quietly  said: 
"Many  undertakings  fail  because  of  lack  of  faith. 
I  believe  that  any  great  task  can  be  accomplished 
by  the  exercise  of  boundless  faith,  much  interces- 
sory prayer,  and  ceaseless  work." 

One  of  Bashford's  marked  Christian  traits  was 
his  humility.  I  have  never  known  a  humbler  man. 
He  was  conscious  of  his  power  and  yet  was  always 
as  humble  as  a  child.  Speaking  to  the  ministers  of 
the  Foochow  Conference  of  the  Methodist  Episco- 
pal Church,  he  once  said:    "There  are  Chinese 


204  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


ministers  here  who  are  nearer  the  Throne  than  I  am 
and  at  whose  feet  I  would  gladly  sit  and  be  taught 
in  the  things  of  Christ."  He  did  his  work  daily 
facing  the  judgment  of  Christ  upon  his  doings.  He 
would  often  say:  "I  cannot  face  the  judgment  of 
God  and  do  that."  In  the  most  troubled  times  of 
the  Revolution,  when  the  property  of  foreigners  and 
the  mission  stations  were  being  destroyed,  he  would 
spend  literally  whole  nights  in  prayer  and  thought 
in  order  that  he  might  guide  the  anxious  mis- 
sionaries. When  affairs  seemed  to  have  reached  a 
crisis  and  the  foreign  quarters  in  Foochow  were 
crowded  with  missionaries  and  refugees,  Bishop 
Bashford  went  to  Foochow  as  a  guest  in  a  mis- 
sionary's home  in  which  sixteen  refugees  were 
already  housed.  They  were  much  excited  over  the 
situation,  and  complaining  because  more  vigorous 
measures  had  not  been  taken  by  the  American 
government  for  their  protection.  The  arrival  of 
Bishop  Bashford  was  like  the  command  of  divine 
peace  upon  the  household.  His  calm,  cheery 
manner,  his  wide  information  concerning  the  situa- 
tion in  the  country  at  large,  and  his  unwavering 
faith  in  God  restored  quiet  and  courage  to  the 
hearts  of  the  missionaries. 

But  Bashford's  saintliness  was  not  of  the  type 
of  Saint  Francis  of  Assisi  or  of  Thomas  a  Kempis. 
He  was  not  given  to  religious  sentimentalism.  Self- 
sacrificing  to  a  degree  that  puts  modern  self- 


MAN  AND  HIS  CHARACTER  205 


indulgence  to  shame,  at  the  same  time  there  was 
nothing  in  him  of  the  ascetic.  He  lived  in  the 
crowded  ways  of  human  life  intensely  interested  in 
the  affairs  of  the  world,  but  was  never  absorbed  in 
the  excitement  nor  his  fine  idealism  lowered  by  the 
contact. 

He  was  a  rare  combination  of  the  mystical  and 
the  practical.  All  the  enterprises  affecting  human 
happiness  and  progress  strongly  appealed  to  him. 
The  great  tasks  and  achievements  of  the  day 
stirred  his  enthusiasm  to  its  depths.  And  yet  he 
never  lost  his  touch  with  the  spiritual  world.  To 
him  the  ideal  was  more  real  than  the  material 
things  of  life.  Daily  Scripture  reading  to  him  was 
not  a  mere  habit.  It  was  the  fountain  which  fed 
the  deep  springs  of  his  energy  and  hope.  Prayer 
was  to  him  the  natural,  easy  converse  of  one  who 
was  walking  with  God  in  obedience  to  every  impulse 
of  the  divine  will.  His  mysticism  did  not  transform 
him  into  a  mere  dreamer  of  dreams.  He  was  con- 
stantly seeking  for  light  upon  things  through  earn- 
est, openminded  thinking.  He  was  constantly 
endeavoring  to  interpret  all  life,  individual  and 
national,  in  the  light  of  the  spirit  of  Jesus.  It 
was  this  that  made  him  a  true  prophet  of  God  to 
his  generation. 

His  goodness  was  the  secret  of  his  greatness.  He 
had  great  intellectual  ability.  He  had  the  power 
of  clear,  concentrated,  decisive  thinking.  His 


206  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


knowledge  covered  a  wide  range  of  subjects.  His 
interests  were  broad.  His  sympathies  were  not 
bounded  by  prejudices.  His  judgment  was  sound 
and  his  will  firm.  He  had  both  the  vision  and 
courage  for  wise  leadership.  His  energy  in  work 
knew  not  even  the  bounds  of  physical  health  or 
strength.  But  his  preeminent  distinction  was  in 
the  radiance  of  his  inner  spirit,  in  the  simplicity 
and  genuineness  of  his  faith,  in  the  steadiness  of 
his  consecration,  in  his  unbroken  fellowship  with 
the  eternal.  His  shining  face  was  only  the  reflected 
light  of  his  pure  and  unselfish  soul.  He  indeed 
walked  with  God  along  the  dusty  highways  of  life, 
with  undimmed  vision  and  hands  unsoiled.  He 
gave  not  to  China  alone,  but  to  all  who  knew  him, 
a  sheer  demonstration  of  personal  goodness. 

He  frequently  read  in  the  chapel  service  at  Ohio 
Wesleyan  the  third  chapter  of  Philippians  in  which 
Paul  says:  "Not  that  I  have  already  obtained,  or 
am  already  made  perfect:  but  I  press  on  if  so  be 
that  I  may  lay  hold  on  that  for  which  also  I  was 
laid  hold  on  by  Christ  Jesus.  Brethren,  I  count  not 
myself  yet  to  have  laid  hold:  but  one  thing  I  do, 
forgetting  the  things  which  are  behind,  ...  I 
press  on  toward  the  goal  unto  the  prize  of  the  high 
calling  of  God  in  Christ  Jesus."  This  passage  ex- 
pressed his  ideal  of  higher  Christian  experience — 
the  divine  miracle  of  constant  spiritual  transforma- 
tion accompanied  by  ceaseless  aspiration  for  a  still 


MAN  AND  HIS  CHARACTER  207 


higher  experience;  in  utmost  humility  constantly 
forgetting  past  attainments  and  victories  and  at 
the  same  time  eagerly  striving  for  fuller  likeness  to 
Christ. 

The  following  entry  is  in  his  Journal:  "May  29, 
1905.  My  birthday.  The  past  year  has  been  an 
eventful  one.  I  am  by  no  means  sure  that  I  shall 
ever  become  acclimated  and  be  able  to  spend  many 
years  in  China,  or  in  episcopal  work  anywhere,  but 
I  am  quite  sure  that  I  should  have  broken  in  health 
in  one  year  more  with  the  pressure  of  work  which 
was  on  me  in  the  university.  Hence  I  believe  that 
the  call  to  the  episcopacy  was  the  one  method  of 
continuing  my  life.  I  did  not  at  all  realize  this  fact 
a  year  ago.  If  I  have  overworked  and  have  not  the 
power  of  recovery  left,  even  with  this  entire  change 
of  work,  still  the  entire  change  of  work  offers  a  hope 
of  recovery  of  vitality,  so  we  thank  God  and  take 
courage.  If  I  recover  physical  power,  well.  If  not, 
still  well." 

Compelled  to  return  to  America  in  the  spring  of 
1906  on  account  of  his  health,  on  his  fifty -seventh 
birthday  he  wrote  in  his  notes :  "Life  has  been  very 
rich  and  my  cup  of  happiness  is  well-nigh  full,  with 
Jennie  and  family  friends  and  the  fellow  workers 
in  China  and  America.  The  only  burden  is  China's 
redemption,  and  the  redemption  of  America  and 
the  world.  But  the  sickness  has  revealed  my  weak- 
ness and  led  me  to  more  prayer  and  more  trust  in 


208  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


the  heavenly  Father.  As  life  grows  richer,  as  the 
years  go  by,  I  do  not  feel  that  I  need  regret  that  the 
years  are  passing.  With  the  infinite  years  of  God 
before  me,  I  need  not  regret  the  passage  of  life. 
The  next  world  is  very  attractive." 

"May  29th,  1911.  My  sixty-second  birthday. 
How  much  I  have  to  be  thankful  for!  God,  Christ, 
the  church,  Jennie,  friends,  health,  opportunity  for 
service,  and  heaven  lying  at  the  end!  Lord  help 
me  to  be  faithful." 

On  October  13,  1912,  Bishop  Bashford  goes  to 
the  utmost  depths  in  his  self-dedication  which  he 
records  in  his  notebook:  "The  lust  of  the  flesh  is 
sensuality,  the  lust  of  the  spirit  is  selfish  ambition. 
I  am  clear  that  God  means  me  to  live  free  from 
every  form  of  lust  and  selfish  ambition  and  to  give 
myself  in  steady  unselfish  service  to  him  through 
his  children.  I  give  myself  to  him  in  a  covenant  for 
this  and  will  make  note  of  his  keeping  power  and 
of  his  accomplishment  of  this  twofold  miracle  in 
me.  'And  God  is  able  to  make  all  grace  abound 
unto  you;  that  ye,  having  always  all  sufficiency  in 
everything,  may  abound  unto  every  good  work.'  " 

The  following  meditation  reveals  a  characteristic 
mental  mood  in  studying  both  men  and  books  for 
the  higher  uses  of  life:  "'Kept  by  the  power  of 
God' — I  have  thought  some  on  the  necessity  of 
keeping  conscience  and  reason  enthroned  and  in 
control  of  the  imagination  during  all  one's  conscious 


MAN  AND  HIS  CHARACTER  209 


moments  as  the  real  secret  of  being  kept  by  the 
power  of  God.  And  also  of  keeping  the  mind 
always  busy  at  the  tasks  which  reason  and  con- 
science set  it  and  never  allowing  our  thoughts  to 
wander.  This  seems  to  me  to  be  the  secret  of 
Augustine's  and  Wesley's  being  kept  and  also  of 
their  great  mental  productivity.  But  the  evil  of 
this  method  is  its  danger  of  mechanical  work,  and 
the  vast  proportion  of  both  Augustine's  and  Wes- 
ley's work  is  mechanical. 

"Phillips  Brooks  in  a  measure  combined  a 
realization  of  the  keeping  power  of  God  with  some- 
thing of  Emerson's  freedom  of  imagination.  I 
rather  think  that  Brooks  failed  to  realize  the 
strenuous  ideals  of  either  Augustine  or  Wesley,  but 
that  he  caught  the  secret  of  trusting  God  more 
fully  than  either.  His  whole  life  seems  to  have  been 
a  freer,  more  joyous  type  of  life.  Probably  I  must 
follow  the  method  of  Augustine  and  WTesley,  but 
I  must  also  strive  to  cultivate  the  spontaneity 
of  Brooks.  While  Brooks  developed  a  far  more 
attractive  personality  than  either,  he  failed  to 
accomplish  anything  comparable  to  the  achieve- 
ments of  either  Wesley  or  Augustine." 

In  the  seventh  volume  of  his  notes  he  makes  this 
personal  entry:  "I  have  been  praying  and  singing 
in  heart  'Make  and  keep  me  pure  within.'  It  is  a 
delight  to  cultivate  the  presence  of  God,  to  think  of 
him  and  talk  with  him  the  first  conscious  moments 


210  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


on  waking  and  the  last  moments  before  I  sleep.  I 
ask  to  be  more  like  him." 

In  very  reality  Christ  lived  in  Bashford.  His 
conversation  naturally  turned  to  spiritual  things. 
His  personality  was  radiant  with  a  spirit  which  is 
not  of  this  world.  As  was  said  of  Spinoza  and 
Frederick  Dennison  Maurice,  James  W.  Bashford 
also  may  be  truly  called  a  "spiritual  splendor." 


CHAPTER  XI 


THE  MAN  AND  HIS  FRIENDS 

To  know  Bishop  Bashford  at  his  best  was  to  see 
him  in  the  home  circle.  The  naturalness  and  sim- 
plicity of  manner  which  characterized  him  in 
public  were  none  the  less  evident  in  the  privacy  of 
his  home.  He  was  in  his  home  as  he  appeared  to 
be  everywhere.  But  the  real  flavor  of  his  life  can 
be  appreciated  only  after  crossing  the  threshold 
of  his  home.  Before  we  enter  may  I  remind  the 
reader  of  the  delicacy  of  portraying  the  intimate 
doings  of  home  life.  A  biographer  with  any  con- 
science hesitates  to  intrude  upon  the  personal 
sanctities.  Yet  it  is  in  this  sacred  enclosure  that 
we  see  Bishop  Bashford  in  the  richness  and  beauty 
of  his  character. 

On  September  24,  1878,  James  W.  Bashford 
married  Miss  Jane  M.  Field,  daughter  of  W.  W. 
Field,  a  successful  farmer  and  business  man  in 
Madison,  Wisconsin.  A  public  spirited  citizen  of 
stalwart  character,  Mr.  Field  served  the  state  as 
Secretary  of  the  State  Agricultural  Society,  Speaker 
of  the  House  of  Representatives,  and  a  member  of 
the  Board  of  Regents  of  the  University  of  Wis- 
consin. 

Mrs.  Bashford's  family  went  to  Wisconsin  from 
211 


THE  MAN  AND  HIS  FRIENDS  213 


well  selected  ones.  When  President  Hayes  first 
visited  in  the  home  at  the  time  of  Doctor  Bash- 
ford's  inauguration  as  President  of  Ohio  Wesleyan 
University,  he  remarked:  "I  saw  evidence  of  the 
character  of  the  man  in  the  pictures  on  the  walls 
of  his  home.  I  naturally  wondered  how  he  stood 
on  the  great  questions  of  modern  thought  and 
religion.  When  I  discovered  a  beautiful  picture  of 
Phillips  Brooks  just  above  his  desk,  that  was 
enough  for  me.  That  picture  spoke  more  than 
volumes  of  books." 

In  his  home  Doctor  Bashford  was  not  demonstra- 
tive, but  always  cordial  and  considerate.  In  speak- 
ing to  Mrs.  Bashford  he  seldom  was  heard  to  use 
endearing  nicknames.  It  was,  "Jane"  or  "Jennie." 
And  yet  he  was  uniformly  tender  and  thoughtful 
toward  her.  His  courtesy  and  unselfishness  in  the 
home  were  unfailing  toward  everyone.  One  who 
lived  as  a  member  of  Bashford's  household  writes: 
"In  the  five  years  I  lived  in  their  home  I  never 
heard  the  suggestion  of  an  unkind  word  or  even  a 
nervous  and  fretful  remark  addressed  to  her.  If 
kindliness  and  though tfulness  and  culture  consti- 
tute a  home,  then  theirs  was  truly  ideal.  No  matter 
how  tired  they  were  there  was  always  cheerfulness 
and  good  nature."  It  was  the  customary  thing  for 
Doctor  Bashford  to  talk  over  with  Mrs.  Bashford 
the  problems  which  had  been  on  his  mind  during 
the  day.  When  he  returned  from  his  long  journeys, 


214         JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


before  taking  up  his  work,  however  urgent  it  might 
be,  he  would  talk  with  Mrs.  Bashford  of  the  expe- 
riences of  the  trip,  telling  her  of  the  people  whom 
he  had  met  and  relating  incidents  of  special  inter- 
est. He  deferred  to  her  judgment  constantly.  Her 
excellent  business  ability  enabled  her  to  relieve  him 
entirely  of  the  finances  of  the  household. 

The  comradeship  of  Doctor  and  Mrs.  Bashford 
was  beautiful.  She  entered  intelligently  and 
sympathetically  into  all  his  plans.  They  read 
together;  they  traveled  together  whenever  her 
health  would  permit;  they  enjoyed  fully  no  social 
occasion  unless  they  were  together.  Whenever 
separated  nearly  every  letter  he  wrote  contained 
some  mention  of  his  wife.  Bishop  Bashford's  devo- 
tion to  Mrs.  Bashford  grew  with  their  growing 
years.  His  notebooks  abound  in  tender  references 
to  her  and  acknowledgments  of  his  indebtedness  to 
her  character  and  help.  On  one  of  her  birthdays  he 
writes  in  his  Journal:  "Aside  from  fellowship  and 
service  with  Christ  I  count  my  fellowship  with 
Mrs.  Bashford  the  one  thing  of  my  earthly  life 
most  worth  while;  and  I  cannot  know  how  much 
my  deeper  fellowship  and  larger  service  with  Christ 
is  due  to  her  presence  and  inspiration." 

After  a  year's  residence  in  China  Mrs.  Bashford 
became  very  ill.  When  advised  by  the  physician 
of  her  serious  illness,  he  wrote  in  his  Journal: 
"Surely  her  loss  would  be  a  terrible  price  to  pay 


THE  MAN  AND  HIS  FRIENDS  215 


for  coming  to  China."  On  her  fifty-seventh  birth- 
day, he  wrote:  "I  think  she  grows  more  and  more 
indispensable  to  me  as  she  grows  more  and  more 
beautiful  and  saintly  every  day.  Like  all  persons 
of  emotional  temperament,  I  move,  in  part  at  least, 
from  impulse.  I  have  strong  impulses  toward  the 
Christian  ideal.  Jennie's  loyalty  to  that  ideal  is 
the  loftiest  and  the  most  unswerving  of  any  person 
I  have  ever  known." 

One  who  has  enjoyed  the  privilege  will  never 
forget  the  gracious  hospitality  of  the  Bashfords. 
They  liked  people.  They  entertained  easily  and 
simply.  During  his  presidency  of  Ohio  Wesleyan 
University  his  residence  was  the  social  center  of 
the  college.  Every  distinguished  visitor  was  enter- 
tained in  the  president's  home.  A  student  who 
lived  in  the  home  during  his  college  days,  paying 
his  expenses  by  household  duties,  now  occupying  a 
prominent  place  in  public  life,  gives  this  interesting 
glimpse  of  the  social  life  of  the  Bashfords  at  home : 
"I  recall  with  great  pleasure  the  visits  of  President 
Rutherford  B.  Hayes  and  Governor  William  Mc- 
Kinley,  of  Alexander  Graham  Bell,  Dr.  James  A. 
Stalker  of  Scotland  and  Dr.  Frank  Gunsaulus,  and 
scores  of  other  distinguished  men.  One  of  the  most 
interesting  evenings  I  as  a  boy  ever  experienced 
was  spent  at  the  table  where  were  seated  Joseph 
Cook,  Dr.  James  M.  Buckley,  Bishop  R.  S.  Foster, 
Bishop  H.  W.  Warren,  John  G.  Woolley,  and  Dr. 


216  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


L.  D.  McCabe,  with  Doctor  and  Mrs.  Bashford." 
What  table  talk! 

Another  student  gives  a  refreshing  glimpse  of 
the  Bashford  home  from  the  inside:  "When  I  went 
into  his  home  I  was  a  green  country  boy  with  all 
of  the  crudities  which  belong  to  Western  country 
lads.  I  was  received  into  the  home  as  though  I 
were  his  own  boy.  His  own  son  could  not  have  been 
treated  with  more  uniform  courtesy  and  kindness 
nor  with  greater  interest  in  his  welfare  than  he 
treated  me.  I  sat  at  the  table  with  Doctor  and 
Mrs.  Bashford,  no  matter  whether  the  guest  were 
a  bishop  or  a  governor,  a  senator  or  an  ex-President. 
No  words  can  tell  what  those  five  years  spent  with 
the  Bashford  family  meant  to  me.  Were  I  com- 
pelled to  give  up  what  I  received  in  their  home 
through  my  association  with  them  or  to  give  up 
what  I  received  in  college,  much  as  I  prize  what  the 
college  did  for  me,  I  would  far  rather  surrender 
what  I  received  in  college." 

Bishop  Bashford's  home  gave  to  him  practically 
his  only  recreation  or  diversion.  He  never  took 
time  for  outdoor  sports  until  he  was  fifty -five  years 
of  age,  when  he  learned  to  play  tennis.  Almost 
every  evening  he  would  play  a  game  of  dominoes 
with  Mrs.  Bashford.  He  played  with  all  the  zest 
and  jollity  of  a  boy  and  was  always  eager  to  win. 
After  his  day's  work  was  done  he  enjoyed  a  walk 
in  the  country.   A  frequent  companion  on  these 


THE  MAN  AND  HIS  FRIENDS  217 


hikes  says:  "We  would  often  see  Bashford  walking 
rapidly  through  the  woods  making  gestures  and 
giving  his  head  the  peculiar  nod  which  was  so 
characteristic  when  he  was  earnestly  attacking  a 
problem.  When  his  attention  was  called  to  the 
matter  he  would  laugh  and  say,  'Well,  I  just 
thought  of  something  new,'  and  then  he  would 
proceed  to  tell  of  some  new  plan  for  his  work." 

No  portrait  of  James  W.  Bashford  would  be  true 
to  life  that  did  not  depict  his  charms  as  a  friend. 
He  had  a  genius  for  friendship.  His  sincerity  of 
purpose  and  vivacity  in  conversation,  combined 
with  his  overflowing  sympathy  and  contagious 
cheerfulness,  made  him  the  center  of  every  social 
group.  His  genuine  interest  in  folks  drew  them  to 
him,  and  they  were  held  by  the  charm  and  whole- 
someness  of  his  personality. 

Who  that  was  admitted  to  the  choice  circle  of 
his  friends  will  forget  the  charm  and  the  radiant 
good  cheer  of  Bashford's  presence?  He  was  merry 
without  becoming  light  or  trivial.  Even  among 
intimates  his  cordiality  never  betrayed  him  into 
familiarity.  In  conversation  he  was  racy  and 
stimulating.  He  listened  with  a  wistful  eagerness 
that  drew  forth  the  best  that  was  in  his  com- 
panions. In  the  company  of  those  who  shared  his 
interests,  his  mind  moved  so  swiftly  from  one  great 
concern  to  another  that  his  friends  at  times  were 
highly  amused. 


218  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


On  one  occasion  he  was  on  a  Pullman  train  with 
his  friends  Raymond  and  McDowell.  While  he  and 
President  Raymond  were  in  the  dressing  room 
together,  he  was  pouring  out  a  stream  of  talk  on 
some  problem  of  the  Far  East,  when  suddenly 
Bishop  McDowell,  half -a  wake,  appeared.  Bashford, 
not  even  pausing  long  enough  to  say  "Good  morn- 
ing," continued,  addressing  McDowell:  "As  I  was 
saying  to  Raymond,"  etc. 

To  appreciate  the  flavor  of  Bashford's  friendli- 
ness one  must  see  him  as  a  guest  in  the  home. 
Here  as  everywhere  he  was  free  from  airs.  His 
manner  was  easy  and  natural.  The  children  became 
his  friends  at  once.  He  was  as  appreciative  as  a 
child  of  every  kindness.  He  told  stories ;  he  entered 
into  the  plans  of  the  different  members  of  the 
family;  with  rare  skill  he  turned  the  talk  into 
higher  channels.  His  benign  presence  seemed  to 
say  continually:  "Peace  be  to  this  household;  my 
peace  give  I  unto  you."  Whatever  circle  of  friends 
he  entered,  the  deepest  impression  he  made  was  of 
his  wholesomeness.  His  attachment  to  his  own 
family  was  very  strong.  He  lost  no  opportunity  of 
visiting  or  of  helping  them.  His  response  to  any  of 
his  relatives  in  misfortune  or  trouble  was  prompt 
and  generous.  He  never  lost  interest  in  his  class- 
mates in  the  university.  One  who  had  entertained 
him  as  a  guest  many  times  writes:  "Every  thought 
of  him  brings  with  it  a  joyful  sense  of  gratitude 


THE  MAN  AND  HIS  FRIENDS  219 


that  I  had  the  great  pleasure  of  working  under  his 
leadership  and  the  still  greater  pleasure  of  knowing 
him  so  intimately  in  our  home.  He  is  the  greatest 
man  I  ever  came  in  personal  contact  with  and  the 
more  I  knew  him  the  more  I  appreciated  his  great- 
ness. And  yet  I  do  not  think  of  him  as  a  great  man 
first  of  all,  but  as  I  would  of  a  personal  friend;  for 
it  was  in  the  so-called  little  things  of  life  that  he 
seemed  greatest  and  most  inspiring  to  me."  His 
classmate,  Professor  H.  G.  Mitchell,  wrote  when  he 
heard  of  his  death:  "He  was  so  frank  and  simple 
and  earnest.  I  place  him  among  the  noblest  men 
I  have  ever  known.  How  grateful  I  am  to  have 
been  permitted  to  enjoy  his  friendship,  as  I  have, 
these  forty  years." 

Notwithstanding  the  demands  of  his  public  and 
official  duties  his  correspondence  with  personal 
friends  was  voluminous.  Every  year  for  forty  years 
he  sent  a  letter  to  the  members  of  his  class  in 
Boston  University  School  of  Theology.  His  last 
letter  to  the  class  summoning  them  to  a  reunion 
reveals  the  warmth  of  his  friendship  for  his  class 
comrades. 

Here  I  am  in  Boston  reading  the  class  letters.  I  have 
had  a  varied  year,  with  varied  experiences  and  heavy 
losses  of  family  friends,  but  Mrs.  Bashford  and  myself 
have  been  spared  to  each  other  and  we  have  very  much 
for  which  to  thank  God. 

But  this  is  not  a  class  letter.    We  shall  have  time  to 


220  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


tell  of  our  experiences  and  talk  over  our  past  and  our 
future  when  we  meet  in  Boston  for  our  fortieth  anni- 
versary, June  6,  1916. 

Let  every  member  determine  with  a  mighty  resolve  to 
be  present.  I  had  just  accepted  an  invitation  from  Presi- 
dent W.  O.  Thompson  to  deliver  the  commencement  ad- 
dress at  Ohio  State  University,  June  6.  I  especially  covet 
the  privilege  of  cultivating  the  State  universities  of 
America.  They  can  be  turned  in  the  right  directions.  But 
the  second  day  after  I  had  accepted  the  engagement 
John's  letter  [Dr.  John  Faville,  class  secretary],  which 
had  been  sent  to  China,  overtook  me,  and  I  immediately 
wrote  President  Thompson,  telling  him  that  the  reunion 
engagement  antedated  my  engagement  with  him,  and  I 
could  not  possibly  set  aside  the  original  engagement  for 
the  latter  invitation.  I  can  go  to  the  Ohio  State  Uni- 
versity some  other  time,  but  our  class  will  have  only  one 
fortieth  anniversary.  Let  us  make  it  a  leisurely  affair, 
not  crowding  too  much  into  a  program,  but  leaving  our- 
selves time  to  sit  down  and  talk  over  the  years  since  we 
were  students  together. 

Do  you  know  that  in  some  ways  that  was  the  culmina- 
tion of  Boston's  glory?  Emerson,  Holmes,  and  Whittier, 
and  Lowell,  and  Norton,  and  Eliot,  and  James,  and 
Mrs.  Livermore,  and  Julia  Ward  Howe,  and  Wen- 
dell Phillips,  and  Phillips  Brooks  were  here  at  that  time. 
They  were  all  sent  for  our  profit  and  enjoyment  and 
they  are  all  gone  now,  save  President  Eliot.  That  was 
also  the  day  of  the  giants  of  Boston  University — Warren, 
Latimer,  Sheldon,  and  Bowne,  who  came  before  I  left, 
but  after  most  of  you  left,  and  Monroe  in  the  School  of 
Oratory  were  the  men  who  put  their  stamp  upon  us.  Only 
Warren  of  that  number  is  left.    We  must  have  a  quiet 


THE  MAN  AND  HIS  FRIENDS  221 


afternoon  with  him.    That,  alone,  will  be  enough  to  make 

the  event  a  red-letter  day  in  the  history  of  our  lives.  We 

must  call  in  Huntington  and  Barker  and  any  other  of  the 

graduates  who  preceded  or  immediately  succeeded  us  and 

whom  any  of  you  know. 

It  will  be  the  lighting  of  the  camp-fire  for  the  last  time 

until  we  kindle  it  on  the  plains  beyond  the  river.  Set 

everything  aside,  even  ill  health,  for  I  believe  it  will  be  a 

tonic  for  every  one  of  us  which  will  add  at  least  a  year 

to  each  of  our  lives.  „ 

Cordially  yours, 

J.  W.  Bashford. 


The  following  letter  from  President  B.  P. 
Raymond  of  Wesleyan  University  to  his  friend, 
Bishop  McDowell,  is  more  than  a  bit  of  pleasantry 
at  Bashford's  expense: 

Middletown,  Conn., 

May  %  1908. 

My  dear  Bishop  McDowell: 

It  would  have  done  me  good  to  assist  you  and  Wood  at 
that  beefsteak.  I  hope  to  see  you  at  Baltimore  pretty 
soon.  I  shall  go  to  Baltimore  on  the  14th  to  spend  three 
or  four  days.  Perhaps  we  could  eat  a  beefsteak  together 
down  there  and  invite  the  "old  archangel"  in  to  share  it 
with  us.  I  had  a  glimpse  of  him  in  New  York.  He  had 
just  folded  his  wings  from  a  flight  over  the  Pacific.  He 
is  still  looking  for  the  mastery  of  the  same.  Whether  he 
intends  to  make  it  by  converting  China  and  annexing  the 
same,  or  whether  he  would  vote  for  Roosevelt's  four 
battleships  as  a  means  to  the  same  end,  I  do  not  know ; 
but  as  sure  as  you  live,  if  the  rest  of  us  had  one-sixtieth 
part  of  his  faith  we  should  have  the  whole  Pacific  on  our 


222  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


hands.  If  it  proved  to  be  stormy  we  might  get  wet,  but 
nevertheless  we  should  be  in  possession.  We  will  settle 
that  question  when  I  meet  you  and  him  in  Baltimore. 

Yours  very  truly, 

B.  P.  Raymond. 

In  response  to  a  request  from  Doctor  William 
V.  Kelley,  editor  of  the  Methodist  Review,  for  an 
article  for  publication,  Bishop  Bashford's  reference 
to  his  ill  health  brought  back  this  finely  character- 
istic reply  from  Doctor  Kelley,  revealing  the  kin- 
ship between  these  two  choice  souls. 

July  23,  1918. 

My  dear  Bishop  Bashford: 

The  most  prized  part  of  your  note  is,  "I  have  reason 
to  feel  that  I  shall  recover  my  health  again."  Keep  on 
feeling  that  way  and  we  will  all  be  content.  Resilience  is 
one  of  your  finest  capacities.  But  please  don't  rid  your- 
self of  that  quite  original  cough  which  is  one  of  your 
peculiar  charms.  We  would  scarcely  know  you  with- 
out it !  and  it  seems  to  agree  with  your  health. 

As  for  the  article,  do  "keep  it  in  mind  and  write  it  at 
such  time  as  strength  will  permit." 

The  Lord  has  saved  me  by  keeping  me  in  good  company. 

When  I  think  of  you  and  Mrs.  Bashford,  my  memory 
harks  back  to  Cleveland,  1896,  and  our  table-mating 

^nere-  Ever  earnestly  yours, 

William  V.  Kelley. 


In  1908  Bishop  W.  S.  Lewis  went  to  China  as  the 
episcopal  colleague  of  Bishop  Bashford.  Two  men 


THE  MAN  AND  HIS  FRIENDS  223 


could  not  be  more  different  in  temperament  and 
in  methods  of  work.  But  their  differences  were 
complementary  and  never  led  to  rivalry  or  conflict 
in  administration.  Their  friendship  was  like  the 
devotion  of  David  and  Jonathan.  When  they  were 
in  the  midst  of  their  labors  together  Bishop  Bash- 
ford  observed:  "I  have  never  known  another  man 
who  can  carry  such  heavy  burdens  without 
staggering  as  Bishop  Lewis  carries."  Each  in 
honor  preferring  the  other,  wrought  together  with 
undivided  devotion  for  the  church  of  Christ  in 
China.  What  a  noble  tribute  Bishop  Lewis  gave 
to  his  fallen  comrade  when  he  wrote:  "As  a  co- 
laborer  Bishop  Bashford  was  always  fair,  thought- 
ful, generous.  He  had  the  rare  grace  of  formulating 
his  plans  with  due  regard  for  the  viewpoint  of  those 
with  whom  he  worked.  Firm  in  his  convictions,  he 
was  never  stubborn;  openminded  and  sincere  in 
self-effacement,  interpreting  the  ideas  of  those 
with  whom  he  worked  in  the  atmosphere  of  his 
own  spirit.  When  the  responsibility  for  final  de- 
cision rested  in  another,  though  in  frank  discussion 
he  might  differ  from  the  plan  of  his  coworker,  yet 
he  never  complained  or  criticized  but  acted  on 
the  assumption  that  the  policies  determined  were 
cordially  shared  by  himself." 

Ardent  as  were  his  friendships  his  judgment  of 
men  was  not  colored  by  personal  favoritism.  No 
taint  of  suspicion  was  ever  upon  him  of  promoting 


224  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


the  interest  of  a  friend  at  the  expense  of  the  cause 
to  be' served.  As  an  official  in  the  church  he  carried 
on  his  heart  the  interests  of  the  families  of  ministers 
and  missionaries  whom  he  must  assign.  A  true 
bishop  as  he  was,  we  thought  of  him  not  so  much 
as  a  bishop  but  as  a  great-hearted  friend.  He  was 
beautifully  lacking  in  episcopal  self-consciousness. 
In  whatever  rank  or  circle  of  his  fellows  Bashford's 
loftiest  distinction  was  in  being  a  Christlike  man 
among  men. 

The  following  letter  from  Phillips  Brooks  to 
Bashford  reflects  their  spiritual  kinship: 

My  dear  Dr.  Bashford: 

I  hope  that  I  can  make  you  know  with  what  great 
pleasure  I  have  received  your  letter,  and  how  sincerely 
and  profoundly  I  regret  that  it  seems  impossible  for  me 
to  do  what  you  so  kindly  and  cordially  invite  me  to  under- 
take. 

That  you  should  think  that  I  could  serve  the  great 
interests  which  we  all  have  at  heart  by  a  course  of  lectures 
to  your  students  makes  me  most  glad  and  grateful.  There 
is  no  work  outside  of  my  regular  and  stated  duty  which 
it  would  be  more  pleasant  to  attempt.  I  should  accept 
your  judgment  and  do  my  best  to  fulfill  your  wishes  if  I 
thought  that  I  had  the  right  to  allow  myself  any  such 
excursion. 

But  I  do  not.  In  the  midst  of  work  here  which  is  only 
half  done  I  have  been  compelled  to  feel  that  I  must  not 
go  abroad  and  so  more  and  more  as  years  have  gone  on 
I  have  confined  myself  to  what  was  pressing  directly  on 
my  conscience  and  my  hands.    I  dare  not  hope  for  larger 


THE  MAN  AND  HIS  FRIENDS  225 


liberty  in  the  future  than  I  have  had  in  the  past.  And 
so  with  deep  regret  and  many  thanks  I  must  say  no  when 
I  would  most  gladly  say  yes. 

I  believe  that  you  will  understand  me  and  know  that  I 
am  very  grateful  and  very  sorry.  I  shall  always  remem- 
ber your  invitation  with  deep  satisfaction  and  I  shall 
value  most  highly  the  letter  in  which  you  communicated 
it  to  me  in  such  courteous  and  friendly  words. 

I  am, 

Faithfully  yours, 
(Signed)  Phillips  Brooks- 


CHAPTER  XII 


THE  CALL  TO  SUFFERING 

In  the  fall  of  1918  Bishop  Bashford  wrote  in  his 
Journal:  "In  my  lifetime  I  have  had  three  great 
calls — the  call  to  the  Christian  ministry,  the  call  to 
China,  and  the  call  to  suffering."  Since  his  first 
year  in  Portland,  Maine,  he  had  suffered  from 
bronchial  catarrh.  For  more  than  twenty  years  he 
had  not  been  entirely  free  from  rheumatism  and  a 
racking  cough.  Incessant  as  were  his  labors,  every- 
where he  went  he  was  under  the  care  of  physicians. 
But  it  became  evident  early  in  the  year  1918  that 
his  health  was  so  seriously  impaired  that  he  must 
take  time  for  recovery.  He  faced  the  fact  with  deep 
disappointment  but  with  a  serene  faith.  He  writes 
in  his  Journal :  "My  suffering  from  rheumatism  has 
been  so  great  while  in  Sioux  City  that  I  could  not 
sit  down  or  lie  down  or  stand  up  for  any  length  of 
time.  Some  nights  I  slept  sitting  on  the  side  of  the 
bed."  Physicians  prescribed  complete  rest.  He 
made  his  last  attempts  to  preach  May  12,  June  2, 
and  August  18,  each  being  followed  by  violent 
suffering.  The  entry  in  his  Journal  in  August  re- 
veals his  dauntless  spirit  as  he  faces  the  inevitable: 
"I  must  give  up  my  work  and  rest  for  some  months. 
I  have  a  growing  conviction  that  I  am  called  to 
226 


THE  CALL  TO  SUFFERING  227 


intercession  rather  than  to  external  efforts.  I  am 
sure  I  have  blundered  by  not  recognizing  my  condi- 
tion earlier.  But  taking  life  as  a  whole  I  think  I 
have  acted  wisely  in  ignoring  as  far  as  possible  all 
personal  pains  and  diseases." 

On  his  sixty-ninth  birthday  his  unresting  spirit 
looks  far  into  the  future:  "Am  sixty -nine  to-day. 
My  life  has  been  full  of  blessings.  I  believe  another 
sixty-nine  years  will  witness  the  practical  dis- 
appearance of  war  and  intemperance  and  a  great 
decrease  of  lust.  I  believe  we  shall  witness  the  up- 
rooting of  useless  and  injurious  vegetation  and  the 
planting  in  their  place  of  edible  grains  and  veg- 
etables until  this  globe  sustains  twice  its  present 
population  and  becomes  an  Eden  again;  and  the 
destruction  of  disease  germs  until  health  will  be- 
come not  only  the  normal  but  almost  the  usual 
state  of  the  race. 

"On  the  ground  of  superior  service  to  the  human 
race  I  foresee  Christianity  purified  and  restored  to 
the  type  of  Christ,  displacing  Buddhism,  Moham- 
medanism, Confucianism,  and  Hinduism.  To  do 
this  Christians  must  set  aside  the  Roman  Catholic 
ideal  of  church  unity  with  one  external  organization 
and  one  sovereign,  and  substitute  for  it  coordina- 
tion and  cooperation  of  all  existing  denominations 
on  a  basis  of  equality  and  with  the  sovereignty  of 
each  surrendered  to  an  ecumenical  council  with 
advisory  powers  only.    But  next  to  and  above 


228  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


Christian  unity  the  great  task  of  Christianity 
everywhere  is  to  convince  the  world  of  the  Father- 
hood of  God  and  the  brotherhood  of  man.  Win 
men's  hearts  by  love  manifested  in  service  and  they 
will  gladly  join  us  in  a  movement  to  carry  this  life 
to  others.  This  is  the  path  to  the  evangelization  of 
the  world. 

"These  are  some  of  the  dreams  floating  through 
my  mind  as  results  of  conversations  with  Jennie 
and  meditation  on  my  sixty-ninth  birthday. 

"The  strength  of  a  ship  is  no  more  surely  revealed 
by  the  way  it  behaves  in  a  storm  than  the  character 
of  one's  life  is  tested  by  the  stress  of  suffering. 

"August  25th.  Had  a  week  of  suffering.  Am 
seeing  new  meaning  in  the  passage,  'He  learned 
obedience  by  the  things  which  he  suffered.'  .  .  . 
There  are  times  when  God  shuts  us  up  with  him- 
self and  we  know  that  we  are  not  shirking;  then 
our  intercessions  may  count  for  more  than  the 
efforts  we  had  planned  to  put  forth." 

Early  in  the  fall  he  wrote  to  Doctor  Frank  Mason 
North  as  follows :  "I  am  exceedingly  sorry  to  report 
to  you  my  complete  withdrawal  from  active 
service.  Doctor  Edwards  in  Chicago  told  me  in 
June  that  I  was  suffering  from  nervous  exhaustion 
brought  on  by  overwork,  and  prescribed  complete 
rest  for  a  few  months.  I  have  not  carried  out  his 
instructions,  but  on  the  contrary  have  tried  to  an- 
swer letters  and  advise  with  friends  who  came  to  see 


THE  CALL  TO  SUFFERING  229 


me  in  regard  to  the  Centenary  and  other  matters. 
I  am  sure  that  my  eagerness  to  help  the  rest  of  you 
bear  your  overwhelming  burdens  has  led  me  into 
a  very  serious  blunder.  I  must  stop  all  attention 
to  letters  and  all  conferences  with  friends  upon  our 
problems,  probably  for  the  next  few  months.  I  feel 
confident  of  recovery  and  am  inclined  to  think  that 
if  I  am  being  led  aside  from  extraordinary  work 
for  a  while  it  is  that  I  may  participate  more  freely 
and  fully  in  the  work  of  intercession.  I  am  con- 
fident that  God  is  leading  us  in  our  program  and 
that  he  will  bring  us  to  our  desired  haven." 

Bishop  Bashford  was  cheered  by  Doctor  North's 
reply:  "You  have  strengthened  us  by  your 
courage  and  by  your  counsels.  You  are  held  in 
affectionate  and  reverent  regard  by  the  hundreds 
and  thousands  of  your  fellow  workers  to  whom  you 
have  been  not  only  a  leader  but  an  inspiration,  and 
out  of  the  intimacy  of  your  fellowship  with  your 
Lord  in  the  quiet  days  you  will  become  to  all  of 
us  who  are  still  held  to  the  active  tasks  a  source 
of  comfort  and  power." 

In  the  fall  of  1918  with  Mrs.  Bashford  he  sought 
the  more  genial  climate  of  southern  California  and 
entered  the  Las  Encinas  Sanitarium  in  Pasadena. 
His  suffering  became  intense.  But  with  undaunted 
courage  he  kept  up  the  fight  for  health  and  planned 
for  future  work.  It  was  during  this  period  of  retire- 
ment that  he  outlined  a  course  of  lectures  which  he 


230  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


had  engaged  to  deliver  the  following  spring  in 
Oberlin  College  and  in  Vanderbilt  University. 
Whenever  strength  would  permit  he  was  dictating 
letters  to  his  colleagues  and  sending  cheering  mes- 
sages far  and  near.  During  the  last  nine  months  of 
his  life  he  made  few  notes  in  his  Journal,  recording 
chiefly  brief  meditations  upon  his  past  life  and  fore- 
casts of  the  future. 

On  December  9,  1918,  he  gives  us  a  glimpse  into 
his  transparent  soul:  "I  have  made  these  fifty -four 
notebooks  partly  for  the  sake  of  consistency  in 
administration  and  for  the  sake  of  a  book  the  con- 
ception of  which  began  to  grow  upon  me  soon  after 
I  came  to  China.  Later  the  thought  came  to  me 
that  my  life  might  some  day  be  written  and  so  I 
wrote  in  the  notebooks  some  recollections  of  my 
earlier  days.  If  my  own  wishes  alone  are  to  deter- 
mine the  matter  I  hope  no  life  of  myself  will  ever 
be  published.  So  far  as  I  can  analyze  myself  I  am 
not  in  any  sense  a  great  man.  I  have  simply 
exercised  common  sense,  have  tried  to  please  God, 
have  worked  hard,  and  have  been  aided — as  all  of 
us  can  be — by  the  Holy  Spirit.  My  reputation 
from  boyhood  has  been  beyond  my  deserts  and 
I  have  always  been  kept  on  the  stretch  to  live  up 
to  the  opinions  which  my  friends  kept  forming  of 
me."  Two  weeks  later  his  brief  entry  runs:  "A 
very  painful  season  with  the  outcome  not  clear. 
But  have  wonderful  promises." 


THE  CALL  TO  SUFFERING  231 


On  the  approach  of  Christmas  he  reviews  the 
deeper  motives  of  his  life:  "I  wonder  if  I  am  still  a 
son  of  ambition.  I  am  sure  I  have  not  done  justice 
by  Jennie  and  the  home  life.  On  the  other  hand, 
in  the  three  great  decisions — the  ministry,  the 
college  presidency,  and  the  episcopacy — my  de- 
cision was  not  in  the  line  of  my  ambitions.  I  recall 
no  other  occasion  when  I  was  consciously  governed 
by  the  desire  for  advancement.  But  I  have  been  so 
absorbed  in  the  work  that  I  have  not  given  suffi- 
cient time  for  the  home  or  the  preparation  for  old 
age.  But  I  know  of  no  preparation  for  old  age  save 
doing  one's  duty  as  he  goes  along." 

While  his  suffering  was  growing  daily  more  and 
more  intense  his  conversations  with  his  wife  and 
fellowship  with  God  were  a  sweet  solace:  "So  far 
as  I  can  discern  I  have  not  one  purpose  or  wish 
contrary  to  His  will.  I  wish  entire  patience  for  every 
moment  of  life  and  a  more  constant  realization  of 
His  presence  and  a  mind  constantly  fixed  on 
heavenly  things.  But  I  am  realizing  a  fullness  of 
peace  and  rest  and  joy  never  equaled  in  my  expe- 
rience before.  'Blessed  be  the  God  and  Father  of 
us  all.'  " 

On  January  11th  he  made  the  last  note  in  his 
Journal:  "Referring  to  my  era  of  suffering  which 
may  be  dated  from  May,  1918,  I  judge  God  is  try- 
ing to  save  me  from  sin  and  to  perfect  my  attitude 
toward  him  and  men.  I  am  self-willed  and  dicta- 


232  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


torial  and  proud,  set  in  my  own  way.  These  afflic- 
tions which  do  not  seem  light,  but  doubtless  will 
later  on,  will  be  found  to  work  out  for  me  a  far 
more  exceeding  and  eternal  weight  of  glory.  'Not 
my  will  but  thine  be  done.'  " 

The  last  of  January  a  friend  who  visited  Bishop 
Bashford  at  the  Sanitarium  wrote: 

"The  beloved  Bashford  we  found  in  bed  on  a 
sleeping  porch  where  he  spends  most  of  his  time. 
He  greeted  us  with  a  beautiful  smile  worth  a  long 
journey  to  see,  and  remarked:  'I  have  had  three 
great  calls  in  my  life:  one  to  the  ministry;  one  to 
China;  and  this  hardest  call  of  all,  to  suffering. 
But,'  he  added,  'how  long  this  trial  shall  last  is 
not  my  concern,  for  my  times  are  in  His  hand  and 
I  have  no  care.'  " 

During  January  and  February  he  was  able  to 
sit  up  only  for  a  couple  of  hours  during  the  day. 
After  March  third  he  failed  rapidly,  and  suffered 
greatly  from  difficulty  in  breathing.  But  every  day 
until  the  end  he  would  have  us  read  the  Bible  and 
pray.  Three  weeks  before  his  death  he  christened 
a  little  child  at  his  bedside.  On  one  of  the  last 
mornings  he  offered  this  characteristic  prayer: 
"Our  Father,  bless,  we  pray  thee,  thy  children  all 
round  the  world  to-day ;  help  each  one  to  put  such 
faith  in  thee,  so  to  trust  in  thee,  and  to  be  so 
obedient  to  thee  that  thou  canst  do  thy  best  for 
each  one,  for  Jesus  sake.  Amen." 


THE  CALL  TO  SUFFERING  233 


When  praying  for  release  from  intense  pain  he 
would  ask  for  all  others  in  suffering  also.  All  his 
life  he  had  lived  for  others,  and  in  his  last  days  of 
agony  others  were  still  in  his  great  heart.  His  faith- 
ful colleague  in  China,  Bishop  W.  S.  Lewis,  wrote 
from  his  bedside:  "The  weight  of  many  cares,  long 
journeys,  night  vigils  have  borne  him  down." 

When  the  fact  became  clear  that  his  health  was 
gone  and  his  work  was  ended,  for  the  first  time  in 
his  life  he  experienced  depression.  Torn  by 
paroxysms  of  coughing  and  suffering  intense  pain, 
he  was  tormented  by  religious  doubts.  He  seemed 
to  have  been  born  and  trained  by  lifelong  habits 
for  action.  He  had  always  expected  when  his  work 
was  done  like  his  father  to  die  suddenly.  When  his 
mind  became  clouded  by  terrible  suffering  and  utter 
human  helplessness  we  are  reminded  of  the  last 
agonies  of  the  Master's  spirit  when  he  cried:  "My 
God,  why  hast  thou  forsaken  me?"  But  the  cloud 
over  his  spirit  was  fleeting.  Again  and  again  he 
asked  to  have  repeated  his  favorite  hymn:  "Peace, 
Perfect  Peace." 

"Peace,  perfect  peace,  in  this  dark  world  of  sin? 
The  blood  of  Jesus  whispers  peace  within." 

The  day  before  his  death,  he  sent  his  love  to  the 
bishops,  ministers,  and  the  church,  leaving  as  his 
farewell  message,  John,  the  thirteenth  chapter. 
Then  he  said  to  the  friend  attending  him,  "Mary, 


234  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


you  know  I  am  dying."  She  answered,  "Yes,  we 
know  you  soon  will  see  Christ  and  the  loved  ones 
gone  before;  we  cannot  tell  how  soon,  but  God  will 
give  you  grace  to  bear  the  suffering."  He  replied, 
"Nothing  to  be  done  now  but  to  pray."  Then  he 
prayed  that  the  "Lord  would  overrule  in  all  things 
small  and  great." 

He  said  to  his  faithful  attendant,  "Sing  a  hymn 
of  praise  when  I  am  gone."  On  the  last  day,  after 
telling  his  wife  of  his  great  love  for  her,  he  whis- 
pered his  last  words,  "But  Christ  first." 


CHAPTER  XIII 


THE  FINISHED  COURSE 

Bishop  Bashford  died  at  five-thirty  on  the 
morning  of  Tuesday,  March  18,  1919,  at  Las 
Encinas  Sanitarium,  Pasadena,  California.  The 
news  of  his  death  produced  profound  regret  on  two 
continents.  Appreciative  notices  of  him  appeared 
in  the  secular  and  religious  papers  throughout  Asia 
and  America.  For  several  weeks  the  Methodist 
press  abounded  in  grateful  tributes,  editorials,  con- 
tributed articles,  and  letters  giving  estimates  of  his 
work  and  personal  recollections.  But  most  sig- 
nificant of  all  were  the  hundreds  of  letters  and 
telegrams  that  his  wife  received  from  people  in 
different  parts  of  the  world  making  tender  and 
grateful  acknowledgment  of  his  help  and  inspira- 
tion from  the  beginning  of  his  ministry  in  Boston. 
I  have  selected  from  the  many  three  that  are  finely 
typical : 

From  a  letter  of  President  E.  A.  Birge  of  the 
University  of  Wisconsin  to  Mrs.  Bashford: 

Dear  Mrs.  Bashford: 

I  write  to  tell  you  of  the  grief  which  the  University 
feels  in  the  loss  of  Bishop  Bashford. 

I  did  not  meet  him,  I  think,  for  several  years  after  I 
came  to  Wisconsin  in  1875,  but  I  well  remember  how  the 
235 


236  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


faculty  used  to  speak  of  him  and  the  hopes  which  they 
had  for  his  future.  They  seemed  to  expect  more  for  the 
world  from  him  than  from  any  other  of  their  recent  grad- 
uates;  and  his  record  has  fully  justified  their  hopes. 
What  a  wonderful  story  of  useful  work,  and  much  more 
than  that  of  a  life  continually  developing  but  growing 
richer,  is  that  of  the  forty-six  years  since  he  graduated  in 
1873!  It  is  a  great  and  beneficent  work  which  he  has 
accomplished  in  the  service  of  God  and  man,  both  in  this 
country  and  in  China.  The  university  has  a  just  pride 
in  the  record  of  his  life,  and  his  Alma  Mater  is  thankful 
that  she  could  contribute  to  the  preparation  for  his  work. 

There  are  no  words  which  can  express  the  loss  which 
his  going  brings  to  the  world,  or  the  grief  which  it  brings 
to  us,  and  most  of  all  to  you,  but  I  should  not  be  true  to 
his  memory  if  I  dwelt  on  this  side,  for  we  should  rather 
thank  God  for  the  great  gifts  which  he  gave  us  in  his  life 
during  so  many  years. 

Dear  Mrs.  Bashford: 

We  offer  you  out  of  the  depths  of  our  hearts  our  com- 
pletest  sympathy  with  you  in  your  loneliness.  We  have 
often  thought  of  you  two  as  exemplifying  the  ideal  in 
marital  relationship  of  mutual  sympathy,  blended  gifts, 
effective  cooperation  in  service,  and  winning  friendship. 

What  Bishop  Bashford  meant  to  me  I  cannot  ad- 
equately express.  He  was  a  counselor  true  and  safe.  His 
utterances  were  always  a  stimulus  both  intellectually  and 
spiritually.  His  faith  in  men — especially  Chinese  men — 
was  exhilarating  and  was  surpassed  only  by  his  faith  in 
God,  which  was  in  reality  the  spring  of  his  other  faith. 
China  will  miss  him  sorely  and  feel  his  loss  more  keenly 
as  the  days  go  by.  D.W.Lyon. 


THE  FINISHED  COURSE  237 


From  a  letter  by  Alice  Stone  Blackwell: 

Dear  Mrs.  Bashford: 

The  news  of  Bishop  Bashford's  death  came  to  me  with 
the  shock  of  a  real  grief — a  sense  of  personal  loss,  al- 
though it  is  many,  many  years  since  I  saw  him. 

I  cannot  refrain  from  writing  to  you  to  express  my 
heartfelt  sympathy  and  to  tell  you  that  I  am  one  of 
those  to  whom  he  was  dear.  I  was  only  a  girl  when  he  was 
pastor  of  the  Harrison  Square  Methodist  Church  and 
I  was  not  even  a  member  of  it ;  but  what  I  saw  and  knew 
of  him  in  those  days  won  my  esteem  and  affection  as  his 
generous  Christianity  must  have  won  those  of  all  who 
had  the  good  fortune  to  know  him,  irrespective  of  their 
denomination. 

It  was  a  privilege  to  have  known  him  even  slightly  as  I 
did,  and  it  must  have  been  an  immense  blessing  to  be 
closely  associated  with  such  a  spirit  for  so  many  years 
and  to  be  able  to  be  a  strength  and  an  inspiration  to 
him  as  you  were.  I  feel  like  saying,  "Blessed  art  thou 
among  women." 

It  is  years  since  I  ceased  attending  any  church — not 
because  I  did  not  think  it  was  a  good  thing  to  attend 
church  but  because  I  always  seemed  to  be  too  busy,  but 
after  going  to  the  memorial  services  I  feel  as  if  I  had 
been  at  church  and  I  feel  as  if  I  must  begin  to  go  again 
— at  least  occasionally.  His  portrait  before  the  pulpit 
preached  better  than  anything  that  was  said. 

The  funeral  service  was  conducted  in  the  pres- 
ence of  a  great  throng  in  the  First  Methodist 
Episcopal  Church  in  Pasadena.  His  body  was 
brought  later  to  Delaware,  Ohio,  for  burial.  It  was 


238         JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


fitting  that  his  remains  should  rest  hard  by  the 
college  campus  with  which  his  memory  will  ever 
be  associated,  and  that  the  memorial  service  should 
be  held  on  the  afternoon  of  commencement  day. 

It  was  in  Gray  Chapel — the  great  building  itself 
a  monument  to  his  devotion — a  large  concourse 
assembled  and  listened  to  noble  tributes  from  his 
colleagues  in  the  Episcopal  office  and  in  the  uni- 
versity, and  to  the  singing  of  his  favorite  hymn, 
"Peace,  Perfect  Peace,"  and  the  place  and  the  time 
were  so  rich  in  associations  with  him  that  it  seemed 
as  if  he  must  appear  on  the  platform  in  our  midst. 

How  the  sun  shone  on  his  funeral  day  in  June! 
The  very  skies  seemed  to  declare  the  joy  and  the 
triumph  of  his  glad,  strong,  cheerful  life.  His  grave 
was  surrounded  by  friends  from  his  college  days,  by 
his  colleagues  in  the  church,  by  missionaries  and 
old  students  who  had  journeyed  hundreds  of  miles 
to  cherish  his  memory  in  death,  when  spontane- 
ously the  whole  company  joined  with  Bishop  W.  F. 
McDowell  singing,  "There's  a  land  that  is  fairer 
than  day."  There  was  no  mourning.  His  tri- 
umphant life  had  merely  passed  beyond  our  sight. 

Wherein  lay  the  chief  value  of  the  service  which 
James  W.  Bashford  gave  to  the  church  and  to  his 
generation?  Perhaps  the  most  impressive  answer 
is  to  be  found  in  the  estimates  of  men  in  high 
places. 

Doctor  William  Gordon  Lenox,  of  Peking  Union 


THE  FINISHED  COURSE  239 


Medical  College,  voiced  the  sentiment  of  many 
others:  "It  was  largely  faith  in  his  faith  which 
drew  me  to  China.  Above  all  other  men  that  I  have 
known  he  had  the  far-seeing  eye  of  the  prophet 
which  looked  across  continents  and  centuries.  In 
contrast  with  the  opinions  of  many  oriental  writers 
on  Eastern  affairs  respect  for  Bishop  Bashford's 
opinion  grows  with  increasing  knowledge.  I  always 
marveled  at  the  triumph  of  his  spirit  over  his  flesh. 
How  could  he  cough  all  night  and  work  all  day? 
How  could  he  cough  all  night  and  be  cheerful  and 
witty  in  the  morning?" 

Chengting  T.  Wang,  a  delegate  to  the  Paris 
Peace  Conference,  wrote  at  the  time  of  Bishop 
Bashford's  death:  "I  have  always  considered  him 
a  great  statesman-missionary.  His  views  about  the 
policies  of  the  missions  and  the  principles  of  the 
missionaries  have  in  mind  not  the  things  present 
alone,  but  take  in  what  will  follow  in  the  years, 
yea,  centuries,  to  come.  In  one  of  his  letters  to  me 
he  said  whatever  work  I  took  up  if  I  did  it  for  the 
Lord  and  for  China  it  was  holy  work.  I  will 
cherish  the  many  words  of  wisdom,  of  counsel 
which  I  received  from  him." 

Doctor  Robert  E.  Speer  said:  "No  man  of  his 
generation  has  done  more  for  foreign  missions  than 
he!" 

Doctor  Simon  Flexner  of  the  China  Medical 
Board  wrote:  "Our  common  interests  in  helping 


240  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


the  Chinese  to  introduce  and  establish  Western 
medical  teaching  and  practice  brought  us  together 
in  the  autumn  of  1916  in  Peking  and  again  in  the 
United  States  after  Bishop  Bashford's  return  to 
America. 

"I  was  greatly  impressed  with  Bishop  Bashford's 
grasp  of  the  problem  of  medical  education  in  China 
and  his  eager  cooperation  with  all  the  new  con- 
structive forces  working  for  that  country's  benefit. 
I  wish  that  I  had  come  to  know  him  better  and  his 
life  might  have  been  spared  many  years  in  order 
to  continue  his  important  work  and  to  see  the 
greater  fruition  of  his  efforts." 

President  Frank  J.  Goodnow  of  Johns  Hopkins 
University,  one  time  official  Adviser  in  China,  gives 
a  significant  appraisal:  "I  met  Bishop  Bashford 
very  frequently  while  I  was  in  China  and  came  to 
have  a  very  high  idea  of  his  insight  into  Chinese 
character  and  conditions.  I  always  enjoyed  talking 
over  with  him  the  various  problems  connected  with 
China.  I  consider  his  book  on  China  a  great  contri- 
bution to  the  literature  of  the  subject." 

Dr.  Frank  Mason  North  as  executive  head  of 
the  Board  of  Foreign  Missions  of  the  Methodist 
Episcopal  Church  had  more  intimate  knowledge 
perhaps  than  any  other  of  Bishop  Bashford's  official 
work  in  China.  His  letter  of  consolation  to  Mrs. 
Bashford  is  as  clear  in  insight  as  it  is  rich  in 
sympathy :  "I  find  every  one  telling  how  great  and 


THE  FINISHED  COURSE  241 


good  he  was  and  no  one  has  seemed  able  to  tell  it 
adequately.  And  surely  I  cannot !  But  his  spiritual 
chivalry,  his  use  of  a  fine  nature  in  the  noblest 
tasks,  his  lucid  character,  his  frank  absorption  in 
the  worth-while  things  to  which  he  gave  his  life 
have  written  upon  all  our  hearts  in  lines  of  in- 
extinguishable light  the  appeal  to  higher  living  and 
fresh  devotion.  No  man  can  be  now  what  he  was 
before  he  knew  Bishop  Bashford.  His  influence 
will  never  die." 

Dr.  William  V.  Kelley,  for  many  years  editor  of 
the  Methodist  Review,  wrote  of  Bishop  Bashford: 
"A  truly  apostolic  bishop,  as  certainly  in  the 
apostolic  succession  as  the  Archbishop  of  Canter- 
bury, a  divinely  ordained  shepherd  and  bishop  of 
souls,  living  up  to  his  calling  and  election." 

John  R.  Mott,  with  a  world-wide  knowledge  of 
religious  conditions,  gives  his  appraisal  of  Bishop 
Bashford's  service  in  strong  words:  "While  the 
word  statesman  is  not  used  with  sufficient  dis- 
crimination, I  have  no  hesitation  in  applying  it  to 
Bishop  Bashford.  In  my  judgment  he  was  one  of 
the  outstanding  national  and  international  Chris- 
tian statesmen  of  his  generation.  Among  the  three 
or  four  most  difficult  and  important  problems  of 
our  time  are  that  pertaining  to  the  promotion  of 
right  relations  between  nations  and  races  and  that 
pertaining  to  the  drawing  together  of  the  various 
Christian  communions.  In  these  two  spheres,  not 


242         JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


to  mention  others,  he  rendered  a  service  of  rare 
distinction.  He  exhibited  a  grasp  of  the  factors 
entering  into  these  problems  and  their  solution 
which  was  nothing  short  of  marvelous.  He  laid 
broad,  deep,  and  solid  foundations.  To  a  unique 
degree  he  won  the  confidence  of  the  most  discerning 
and  penetrating  minds  of  all  races  and  all  classes 
with  which  he  was  thrown  in  contact." 

Dr.  John  H.  Korns  of  Peking  Union  Medical 
College  says:  "He  maintained  his  simplicity  in  a 
wonderful  way.  His  wide  reading,  his  extensive 
travels,  his  contact  with  people  of  various  attitudes 
toward  life,  including  scholars,  diplomats,  avari- 
cious officials,  misanthropists,  did  not  make  of 
v  him  a  cynic  or  a  sophist.  His  soul  was  too  great 
for  this.  He  remained  as  always  a  firm  believer 
in  the  sublime  possibilities  in  man  through  the 
grace  of  God." 

Dr.  David  G.  Downey,  Book  Editor  of  the 
Methodist  Episcopal  Church,  gave  his  estimate  of 
the  character  of  Bishop  Bashford  in  these  words: 
"James  W.  Bashford  was  a  world  man  and  his 
death  is  a  distinct  loss  not  only  to  China,  not  only 
to  Methodism,  not  only  to  the  cause  of  missions, 
but  also  to  the  higher  life  of  his  time.  No  American 
of  his  generation  did  more  to  inspire  and  develop 
an  intelligent  interest  in  Christianity's  world  pro- 
gram. He  was  a  preacher  of  spiritual  passion  and 
intellectual  power;  an  educator  who  combined 


THE  FINISHED  COURSE  243 


administrative  ability  and  the  teaching  gift  with 
that  power  of  personal  inspiration  which  marks 
only  the  highest;  an  author  with  the  scholar's 
method  and  a  commanding  grasp  of  his  subject 
matter;  a  statesman  who  impressed  men  as  not 
only  behind  a  nascent  church  in  China,  but  almost 
equally  behind  a  nation  in  its  birth  throes.  The 
source  of  all  this  remarkable  influence  and  power 
is  found  in  his  simple  and  yet  sublime  faith  in 
Christ  and  his  belief  that  in  such  faith  was  the 
world's  only  hope." 

One  letter  written  by  a  well-known  Chinese 
physician  in  Nanchang,  China,  Dr.  Ida  Kahn, 
is  representative:  "To  us  Bishop  Bashford  was 
most  truly  a  wise  minister,  a  faithful  shepherd,  and 
a  loving  father,  and  we  sincerely  mourn  his  de- 
parture. Never  while  the  present  generation  of 
Christians  survive  will  his  devotion  to  the  cause  of 
China  be  forgotten  and  his  memory  will  ever  be 
held  sacred  by  the  generations  which  shall  follow. 
When  a  new  era  of  spiritual  growth  comes  to  our 
country,  it  will  be  recognized  as  the  result  of  his 
efforts  and  the  efforts  of  men  like  him  in  spirit." 

One  of  the  professors  in  Ohio  "YVesleyan  Uni- 
versity happily  voiced  the  feeling  of  the  faculty  for 
President  Bashford  when  he  wrote  at  the  time  of 
his  death:  "I  consider  it  one  of  my  most  valued 
honors  that  it  was  Doctor  Bashford  who  brought 
me  to  Ohio  Wesleyan.   I  have  come  to  love  the 


244  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


university  for  herself  now,  but  for  some  years 
almost  my  sole  interest  was  in  her  president.  I  shall 
never  forget  what  he  did  for  all  in  many  ways, 
most  of  all  in  letting  me  work  with  him  and  know 
him  intimately.  E.  L.  R." 

Dr.  Arthur  H.  Smith,  a  veteran  missionary 
of  fifty  years'  service  in  China,  wrote  this  finely 
discriminating  testimonial  in  a  personal  letter:  "I 
had  the  privilege  of  traveling  with  Doctor  Bashford 
from  Ningpo  to  Shanghai  just  after  he  came  to 
China  and  at  later  time  to  the  famine  region  in 
Kiangsi.  It  was  on  the  long  tour  to  and  from 
Suchuan  that  I  came  to  appreciate  more  fully  his 
great  qualities,  breadth  of  mind,  clearness  of  vision, 
an  invincible  faith  combined  with  a  wise  and 
winning  firmness  in  at  once  seeing  through  and  all 
around  intricate  questions  which  constituted  him  a 
model  administrator.  He  combined  justice  and 
mercy  and  was  never  unwilling  to  get  new  light. 
What  a  loss  to  China,  to  America,  trying  to  under- 
stand China,  and  to  the  church  universal!" 

Dr.  Frank  D.  Gamewell,  Secretary  of  the  Edu- 
cational Commission  of  China,  writes  out  of  an 
exceptional  intimacy:  "We  are  still  too  near  the 
history  he  has  made  for  us  to  estimate  justly  his 
enormous  contribution  to  China.  The  added  per- 
spective of  the  years  will  enable  the  historian  to 
portray  more  truly  his  services.  But  we  whose  lives 
he  has  touched,  we  who  have  had  the  privilege  of 


THE  FINISHED  COURSE  245 


being  with  him  'in  journeyings  oft,'  sharing  with 
him  in  shipwreck  in  the  darkness  of  a  stormy  night 
on  the  Yangtse,  we  who  shared  with  him  the 
anxieties  till  the  midnight  hour,  during  days  and 
weeks  and  months  when  the  country  was  torn  with 
revolution,  we  who  had  the  privilege  of  intimate 
fellowship,  know  indeed  that  a  prince  has  fallen  in 
Israel.  Judged  by  the  most  exacting  standards, 
Bishop  Bashford  was  a  great  man.  He  was  great 
in  mentality;  he  was  great  in  industry;  he  was 
great  in  goodness." 

On  the  fortieth  anniversary  of  his  graduation 
from  the  University  of  Wisconsin,  his  Alma  Mater 
conferred  upon  him  the  honorary  degree  of  Doctor 
of  Laws.  In  the  award  of  the  degree,  President  C. 
R.  Van  Hise  most  fittingly  characterized  Wis- 
consin's worthy  son:  "James  Whitford  Bashford, 
faithful  pastor,  inspiring  teacher,  successful  college 
president,  bishop  of  the  Methodist  Episcopal 
Church,  apostle  to  China,  in  your  successful  career 
of  nearly  forty  years,  you  have  well  illustrated  the 
ideal  of  service  for  which  this  university  stands. 
This  ideal  inspired  you  as  a  preacher  and  educator 
among  your  own  people.  Following  this  ideal  when 
elected  bishop  in  1904,  you  asked  to  be  sent  to 
China,  and  recently  you  have  repeated  the  request 
to  remain  there  during  the  critical  period  which 
now  confronts  that  most  ancient  nation.  WTith 
burning  zeal  you  have  encouraged  the  awakening 


246  JAMES  W.  BASHFORD 


of  a  great  but  shrinking  race  to  the  blessings  of 
liberty  and  have  assisted  in  the  formation  of  a 
government  after  the  American  model." 

Former  President  of  the  United  States  Chief 
Justice  William  H.  Taft  bore  this  testimony:  "I 
value  Bashford  as  a  pioneer,  statesman,  and 
diplomatist  in  the  work  of  opening  the  field  of 
ancient  Chinese  civilization  to  the  fructifying  influ- 
ence of  Christian  progress." 

In  a  funeral  tribute  of  rare  beauty  and  eloquence 
Bishop  William  Fraser  McDowell,  for  forty  years 
the  intimate  friend  of  Bashford,  portrayed  him  as 
philosopher,  statesman,  preacher,  and  saint,  apply- 
ing to  Bashford  the  words  of  Arthur  Brooks  con- 
cerning his  brother,  Phillips  Brooks:  "God  be 
praised  to-day!  From  God  he  came;  with  God  he 
walked;  God's  world  he  loved;  God's  children  he 
helped;  God's  church  he  led;  God's  blessed  Son  he 
followed;  God's  nearness  he  enjoyed;  with  God  he 
dwells." 

One  who  was  inspired  in  his  student  days  by  him 
as  by  none  other  and  was  honored  by  his  friend- 
ship and  privileged  to  tell  the  story  of  his  life  may 
be  permitted  to  salute  him  in  the  words  of  the 
young  prophet  to  his  departing  master:  "Let  a 
double  portion  of  thy  spirit  be  upon  me."  The 
memory  of  his  shining  countenance,  the  inspira- 
tion of  his  white  life,  and  the  summons  of  his 
heroic  devotion  are  a  precious  legacy. 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DATA 


JAMES  WHITFORD  BASHFORD 

1849:  Born,  May  29,  at  Fayette,  Wisconsin. 
1856:  Entered  public  school,  Fayette,  Wisconsin. 
1867:  Entered  University  of  Wisconsin,  Madison. 
1868:  Taught  in  High  School,  Fayette. 
1871 :  Became  editor  of  The  University  Press. 
1873:  Received  A.  B.  degree  from  the  University  of  Wis- 
consin. 

1873:  Became  instructor  in  Greek  in  the  University  of 
Wisconsin. 

1874:  Entered  Boston  University  School  of  Theology. 

1875:  Became  Pastor  Harrison  Square  Methodist  Epis- 
copal Church,  Boston. 

1876:  Graduated  from  the  School  of  Theology  of  Boston 
University. 

1878:  Became  Pastor  First  Methodist  Episcopal  Church, 

Jamaica  Plain. 
1878:  Graduated  from  the  School  of  Oratory. 
1878 :  Married  Miss  Jane  M.  Field. 

1881 :  Received  degree  of  Ph.D.  from  Boston  University. 

1881  :  Became  Pastor  Auburndale  Methodist  Episcopal 
Church,  Auburndale,  Massachusetts. 

1884:  Became  Pastor  Chestnut  Street  Methodist  Epis- 
copal Church,  Portland,  Maine. 

1887:  Became  Pastor  Delaware  Avenue  Methodist  Epis- 
copal Church,  Buffalo,  New  York. 

1889:  Elected  President  Ohio  Wesleyan  University. 

1903:  Published  Wesley  and  Goethe  (The  Methodist 
Book  Concern). 

247 


248         BIOGRAPHICAL  DATA 


1904:  Elected  bishop  of  the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church, 
May  19,  at  Los  Angeles,  California. 

1904:  Went  to  China  as  resident  bishop. 

1907:  Published  God's  Missionary  Plan  for  the  World 
(The  Abingdon  Press). 

1908:  Published  China  and  Methodism. 

1912:  Appealed  to  President  Taft  to  recognize  the  Re- 
public of  China. 

1915 :  Appealed  to  the  United  States  Government  to  pro- 
tect the  territorial  rights  of  China. 

1916:  Published  China — An  Interpretation  (The  Abing- 
don Press). 

1918:  Published  The  Oregon  Missions  (The  Abingdon 
Press). 

1918:  Went  to  California  to  regain  health. 

1919:  Died  at  Pasadena,  California,  March  18,  1919. 


Allen,  William  F.,  23,  32 
Andrews,  E.  G.,  76 
Arnold,  Matthew,  196 
Athenaeum  Society,  26 
Auburndale  Methodist  Episcopal 

Church,  77 
Augustine,  209 
Austin,  C.  B.,  89 

Bascom,  John,  23,  40,  100 
Bashford  Family,  13,  14,  29,  52, 

53,  54,  65,  68,  224 
Bashford,  James  W.,  birthplace 
of,  12 

first  school  days  of,  12 
childhood  traits  of,  17,  18 
first  money  earned,  18 
education  of,  20ff 
early  faith  of,  20 
conversion  of,  29ff. 
serious  illness  of,  33ff. 
public  schools  taught  by,  35fJ 
ambition  of,  24,  28,  29,  53 
unselfishness  of,  65,  192 
intellectual  honesty  of,  39 
charged  with  heresy,  6  Iff. 
method  of,  as  preacher,  58ff . 
marriage  of,  73 
first  trip  to  Europe  of,  73 
second  trip  to  Europe  of,  82 
third  trip  to  Europe  of,  105 
reform  work  of,  77ff. 
Bashford,  John  Wesley,  17 
Bashford,  Robert  McKee,  34 
Bashford,  Samuel  Morris,  13 
Barker,  J.  M.,  47,  105,  111 


INDEX 

Barnes,  Helen,  104 
Beecher,  Henry  Ward,  46,  53 
Bell,  Alexander  Graham,  51,  215 
Birge,  E.  A.,  235f. 
Blackwell,  Alice  Stone,  237 
Blaine,  James  G.,  79,  80,  81 
Boston  University,  47,  48 
Bowne,  Borden  P.,  51,  52,  178, 
220 

Bragdon,  C.  C.,  60 
Brooks,  Phillips,  209,  220,  224, 
246 

Brown,  Fred  Richard,  85 
Bryan,  William  J.,  141,  156,  186 
Buckley,  James  M.,  125,  215 
Burton,  E.  D.,  128 
Buttrick,  Wallace,  130,  131 

Carpenter,  Professor,  23 
Centenary  Fund,  203 
Chestnut  Street  Methodist  Epis- 
copal Church,  77 
China  Medical  Board,  129,  130 
Clark,  James  Freeman,  56 
Cranston,  Earl,  125 
Cross,  Dr.  Hiram,  88 
Curtis,  Olin  A.,  47 
Cushman,  Clara  M.,  122 

Damon,  William  C,  30,  40 
Darwin,  Charles,  175 
Davies,  W.  W.,  98 
Davis,  G.  L.,  85 
Davis,  George  R.,  122 
Deering,  William,  107 
Douglas,  Stephen  A.,  20 

249 


250 


INDEX 


Douglass,  Frederick,  75 
Downey,  D.  G.,  124,  242 
Drummond,  Henry,  176,  180 

Educational  Commission,  128 
Eliot,  Charles  W.,  54,  220 
Emerson,  51,  54,  189,  220 

Fairbanks,  C.  W.,  106 

Faville,  Henry,  47 

Faville,  John,  47,  220 

Fayette,  Wisconsin,  12 

Field,  Jane  M.,  73,  211 

Field,  W.  W.,  211 

Fields,  James  T.,  51 

First  Methodist  Episcopal  Church, 

Jamaica  Plain,  61,  71,  72,  73, 

193 

Flexner,  Simon,  130,  131,  239 
Foster,  Randolph  S.,  193,  215 

Gamewell,  F.  D.,  122,  129,  244 
Garland,  Hamlin,  86,  87,  88 
Gates,  F.  L.,  130 
Gladstone,  W.  E.,  173 
Godet,  Professor,  82 
Goodnow,  F.  J.,  240 
Gordon,  George  A.,  59 
Gray  Chapel,  97 
Gray,  David  S.,  90 
Greene,  J.  Richard,  172 
Greene,  Roger  S.,  130 
Gunsaulus,  F.  W.,  215 

Hale,  Edward  Everett,  56,  70,  71 
Hall,  John,  46 

Harrison  Square  Methodist  Epis- 
copal Church,  69,  72 
Hay,  John,  136 
Hayes,  R.  B.,  90,  95,  213,  215 
Heresy  Charge,  62,  63 


Hioki,  Doctor,  141 
Holmes,  R.  W.,  220 
Hopkins,  N.  S.,  122 
Horton,  R.  F.,  162 
Howe,  Julia  Ward,  220 
Huntington,  William  E.,  27,  40 
Huxley,  176 

James,  William,  54,  178 
Jordan,  Sir  John,  155 
Judson,  H.  P.,  130 

Kahn,  Ida,  243 
Kant,  179 

Kelley,  William  V.,  222,  241 
Kerr,  Professor,  40 
Korns,  John  H.,  242 
Ku  Klux  Klan,  25 

Lacy,  William  I.,  180 
Lacy,  W.  H.,  122 
Latimer,  James  E.,  48,  49,  220 
Leavitt,  I.  S.,  27,  30,  32,  40 
Lee,  Jason,  168 
Lenox,  W.  G.,  238f. 
Lewis,  W.  L.,  222,  223,  233 
Lincoln,  Abraham,  12 
Livermore,  Mary  E.,  74,  220 
Loofburrow,  Mary,  36 
Lowell,  James  R.,  54,  220 
Lowry,  H.  H.,  122 
Lyon,  P.  W.,  236 

Mallalieu,  W.  F.,  61,  62 
Matheson,  George,  29 
Maurice,  F.  W.,  210 
McCabe,  L.  D.,  31,  98,  216 
McCaskill,  Everett  M.,  104 
McConnell,  F.  J.,  129 
McDowell,  W.  F.,  67,  218,  221, 
238,  246 


INDEX 


251 


McKinley,  William,  215 
McKee,  Mary  Ann,  14 
McLoughlin,  John,  168f. 
Merrick,  Frederick,  93 
Mitchell,  Hinckley  G.,  47,  177, 
219 

Monroe,  L.  B.,  50 

Moody,  Dwight  L.,  31,  55,  59 

Morris  Family,  14 

Mott,  John  R.,  123,  133,  241 

Miiller,  George,  69,  219 

Nelson,  Edward,  98 
North,  F.  M.,  228f.,  240f. 
Nyholm,  Arvid,  110 

Okuma,  Count,  141,  150,  155 

Padelford,  F.  W.,  129 
Parkinson,  Carroll,  17 
Parkinson,  John  B.,  11,  21,  22,  32 
Parsons,  Richard,  98 
Payne,  Charles  H.,  96,  194 
Peabody,  A.  P.,  48 
Peabody,  Francis  W.,  130 
Percival,  James  Gates,  41 
Perkins,  H.  M.,  98 
Phillips,  Wendell,  54,  74 
Pioneer  Life,  llf 
Pyke,  J.  H.,  122 

Raymer,  George  W.,  37 
Raymond,  Bradford  P.,  47,  218, 
221 

Reinsch,  Paul,  155 
Robertson,  F.  W.,  59,  05 
Rockefeller,  John  D.,  129 
Roosevelt,  Theodore,  136 
Roots,  Bishop,  155 
Russell,  William  F.,  129 


Seaman,  W.  O.,  98 
Sites,  Nathan,  122 
Smith,  Arthur  H.,  52,  244 
Sheldon,  H.  C,  220 
Speer,  R.  E.,  239 
Spencer,  Herbert,  175 
Spinoza,  210 

Stevenson,  Katherine  Lente,  47 
Stalker,  James,  215 
Stone,  Melville  E.,  137 
Storey,  John  A.,  90 
Stuart,  John  L.,  129 
Sun  Yat  Sen,  138f.,  150 
Swing,  David,  46 

Taft,  William  H.,  139,  246 
Taylor,  "Father,"  56 
Thirkield,  Wilbur  P.,  47 
Thomas,  Henry  W.,  46 
Thompson,  W.  O.,  220 
Trousdale,  William  B.,  17 
Twenty-One  Demands,  141ff. 
Twombly,  President,  39 

University  of  Wisconsin,  23 
University  Press,  37,  39 

Van  Hise,  C.  R.,  245 
Vroman,  32 

Walker,  R.  F.,  65 
Wang,  C.  T.,  239 
Warren,  William  F.,  48,  50,  63, 

92,  100,  111,  112,  220 
Warren,  H.  W.,  215 
Weale,  Putnam,  165 
Welch,  W.  H.,  130,  131 
White,  Andrew  D.,  176 
Wesley,  John,  209 
Whitlock,  W.  F.,  98 
Whitman,  Marcus,  168ff. 


252 


INDEX 


Whittier,  John  G.,  54,  220 
Williams,  W.  G.,  98 
Wilson,  Woodrow,  152f,  154f,  156, 
158 

Woman  Suffrage,  74ff. 
Woolley,  John  G.,  215 


Woolley,  Mary  E.,  128 
Wright,  0.  A.,  8,  110 

Yuan  Shi  Kai,  138,  139,  141,  155 

Zion's  Herald,  194 


